Destinations
by Hellfire and Obsidian
Summary: I integrated myself into the Sekirei world and story, where I actually end up an integral character in the plot and a friend and foe to many alike. This story is my first fanfic, and I plan on doing this style more throughout my carreer.
1. Anew

I couldn't understand why I had made this decision. The timing was all wrong, the stocks and house value markets were playing Tetris, in the sense that it took so much time for things to match up. But that mattered not, for I had gotten a really nice deal on what was the nicest palace I had ever seen. It was 157 bedrooms, 3 living areas, a large dining area, and a gigantic variety of flowers and plants in the front yard, next to a pond and a marble walkway. The bricks were white and the tile was black-silver. I smiled upon seeing this. Tokyo, Japan was my new home in which this palace was beheld. I sighed and began to start moving all of my belongings and some furniture that I bought into my new home, not at all in any hurry. I was loading some of my boxes from a few moving trucks into the palace when I heard the jingling and rumbling of my handy iPhone 5-c. I slid past the lock screen with my thumb and looked to find a text message. It read: "I'm here."

I smiled and walked out of the building to find a young man about my age, so in his early 20's, without the best features of clothing but with a good rating look for the ladies- should he have the ambition. His hair was a black, pointy fro all over his head and his face usually gave off a strange read of: " I'm not going to do anything stupid, so don't kill me." I smiled and laughed merrily as I called out, " Minato Sahashi! Good to see you, brother!"

Minato Sahashi and I met because he and I were roommates in a mid-class apartment with decent furnishing and a good cable network with the TV, as well as plenty of food, hot water and no real problems. I had bought the palace weeks and weeks ago, but it had taken a month or two to actually get all of my stuff from my old home. He and I have grown friendly, very much so since he has tried and failed to pass an entrance examination of Shinto Teito University twice; and I have been helping him study. He's been getting closer and closer to actually making it in, and I had confidence that a third time will get him passing. He smiled and we shook hands before I surprised him with a quick hug. As I let go, he laughed a bit, surprised. "Nathan, you still surprise me.," he blunted out as he shook a bit, then he began to look at the palace. "You never told me you were so rich!"

I grinned and answered that statement with a simple, "I'm not rich. I was lucky enough to find that this cost me as much as a standard two story house."

He looked at me in open mouth gape, his eyes wide like quarters and his pupils sharpened down to point size. I furrowed my lips and raised a brow. " Is it customary for Japanese people to have comical attitudes towards such things?," I asked in confusion.

He flailed his arms wildly, as if I was going to kill him. He closed his eyes while doing so and cried out, "No no no! I don't know what you mean!"

I smiled and patted his back. "Help me unload this stuff, I had a lot to take here and I plan to settle as soon as possible." I walked over to the moving trucks and began to unload more stuff into the palace. I wasn't born in Europe or Asia, I came from America and graduated from the Academy of the Arts before I began to travel around my country and eventually moved to this place. I had not found a good living to make yet, for I was not exactly job hunting. My main activities in the last few months were finding a living space and, surprisingly enough, helping Minato get into a college he wanted.

Seven hours of hard work and we managed to unpack and unload everything from the moving trucks, and all that was left was the furniture I ordered. We were sweating like pigs, and Minato looked like he was going to pass out from hunger or dehydration. We sat on the lawn chairs and drank some water from plastic water bottles, the night air cooling us down after a long day's hard work and very few breaks. "Nathan, can we please..." Minato started as he breathed deep and drank some more water.

"There's a good burger outlet pretty close by. I'll pay for our food, I'm starving.," I answered before he even managed to finish his request.

"Yes!" he sputtered in purest gratitude. "I'm going to die without food!"

I rolled my eyes and we began to stroll our way to a burger joint, which was ironically a Japanese McDonald's, and we ordered some food and tore through about 45 yen's worth of burgers and fries. He wouldn't usually eat as fast and as feral as he did, but today was a day that worked us hard, body and mind. We gave off a heavy sigh as I had to pay for our food and he kept bowing apologetically, making this funny in my case. I told him he had nothing to worry about and we began to walk to my home. He checked his cell phone for the time, and he let out a yipe as he cried out, "Oh, man! I gotta head back. I'll see ya."

I laughed a bit as we part ways and I waved to him. "I'll see ya, man."

I walked my way back to the palace and I sat down on a black bean-bag that I had in case that it took the furniture a bit longer to arrive. The walls were a newer coat of white, and it smelled like a mixture of fresh carpet and oily and wooden art supplies. I breathed it all in and let out a breath of approval through my mouth, my eyes that were closed opened softly as I said, "It's good to have a home." I found that there were two restrooms. One had a 5 yards by 7 yards tub that was 3 feet deep. White tiles and black and red décor filled the room, with black towels stainless steel metal stuff; like the faucets and the towel rack. The other bathroom was a black and red tiled room with nothing but dark metal shower heads and towel racks and turn faucets. I unclothed and turned the shower water to a hot temperature as I bathed for an hour or so. It only took so little time to clean myself, I mainly took the time to feel the hot water and the comfort that it had brought. As I closed my eyes for extended points in that time, I felt something new. I smelled the aroma of sandalwood and fresh obsidian mixed in with beach sand. I opened my eyes and disregarded this as I dried myself off and adorned in underwear and a bathrobe. The fresh fabric smell mixed in with steam made me feel tired as I found the master bedroom. It was nothing more than a closet filled with all of my many shirts and pants, some redwood glazed cabinets; and the master bed was black bedspread upon a king size bed futon on the floor and black curtains hung from the ceiling around the bed. I did little more than fall unto the bed and sleep. "Good night, house."

X

I woke up to the sound of a ring-tone for my phone. It was a repetitive loop of the first minute of "Immigrant Song", the Led Zeppelin song that played for a few times. I answered the phone tiredly and groggily. My eyes were still closed as I groaned and answered, " Ugh... Yes?"

"Oh yeah, baby!," a naturally modulated voice answered to my question.

My eyes doubled in size as I hung up the phone and screamed in a high pitched modulation and ran away from my phone. I shuddered and shook like a little girl as I hid behind the partially opened door. The phone was quiet, and I slowly picked it up in my hand and clicked the small round button below the screen. As the screen lit up, I saw that a dubious friend had sent me a picture of his face with 8-bit sunglasses and along with the cheesy smile of the selfie with the edit, white words spelled out, "Dill with it!" I screamed at my phone. "F**king John!," I screamed as I heard a fart sound from my phone- signaling a text message from him. I read it and it said, "You know it can't hear you."

I unlocked my phone and typed the text message to say in reply, " U f**king wot, m8."

It was then that I was fully awake and still under the adrenaline rush of the strange and emotionally disturbing wake-up call. I found a decent pair of jean pants and a black shirt and donned them as I saw that the sun had barely even risen, by looking out through the window. I darted to my phone and shouted at it, "Freaking John!" and he sent me a text message.

"Problem?" it read.

I threw my phone onto the bed and I put it to sleep mode as I walked down to my kitchen area and made myself a wild berry smoothie and ate a singular apple for my breakfast. I consumed the fruity delight and took to find a good spot to sit outside, on a lawn chair. I took my time to enjoy the way that the sunrise in such a big city looked, even if it wasn't the heavily urban chunk of Tokyo itself. I took a drink from a glass bottle of pomegranate soda and let out a breath as I smiled. "Good stuff, man." I rambled to myself, thinking I was talking to my friend, who was far away.

I took the time to enjoy the environment around me before I noticed her. She stood in front of the palace entryway, with white clothing, pale skin, dirty brown hair, and a tattoo of an orange bird design and a yin yang symbol upon her forehead. Chains upon her chest and no emotion upon her face were the real attention grabbers for me. I stood up and walked towards her. As I slowly strolled over to her, we made eye contact with one another, and my heart began to beat loudly, for I could hear my pulse through my ears. 'Could this be actually exciting **me** of all people?' I thought. 'No, it's just because she's lightly dressed. Stop thinking with your drawers Nathan.' I scolded myself as I stood in front of her. I smiled and waved my hand a bit. " Good morning, ma'am.," I greeted warmly.

She started to tumble and wobble wearily. My eyes widened as I fidgeted and I asked, " Are you okay? Miss!" and I caught her as she fell over and fell into an unconscious slumber. Her body was ice cold, most likely from the provocative light clothing and chains upon her chest. I frantically took her into the palace and placed her on the nearest bed of the closest bedroom. Little did I know this would start a new story for me.


	2. Introductions

I had done nothing for the next few hours, except for keeping a constant vigil upon the woman that had fallen ill right before me. She was sleeping so hard, as if having some inescapable nightmare in her unconsciousness; and I frowned in pity for her, I remembered very graphically when I was plagued by nightmares. But this woman was so beautiful to me, for she was so voluptuous and yet so very calming to look at. One look at her reminded me of the burning of ice, but yet the burning wasn't painful, it was more like the gentle burn that one would get from a hot tub or a massage pad to help with back pain. I ate a peach that I had in a fruit bowl in the kitchen, and still kept watching for any signs of recovery. The Bag Raiders song "So Demanding" started playing on my phone and I saw the illuminated screen to see a picture of myself and Minato clinking soda bottles at a party in the dark in hi-def with a lit sparkler in my mouth. The white letters spelling out: "Minato Sahashi" were what truly caught my attention. My phone was rumbling as my phone rang, so I could tell that he was calling me. The time was 9:35 by this standard of time, so it wasn't too surprising. I answered the phone. "Minato, hey."

"Nathan? I didn't expect you to be awake so early." he responded.

"I already recieved a wake-up call." I stated with a chuckle. "No worries."

"Who woke you up?" he asked.

"A friend from America, John Hoffman. He woke me up at around 3:00 a.m, and I've been up and about ever since."

"Three? Geez, aren't you tired? I mean, I remember you being a heavy sleeper." he commented in a surprised reactional way.

"I slept at nine, so I'm okay. Six hours will sustain me for a little while." I answered reassuringly. "What's up, Minato? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, thanks for asking. I'm going to take the entrance exam in a few days, I was thinking of cramming in some study time so that I could have a sharper chance to pass." he said.

I heard the woman start to groan and open her eyes. My eyes flickered to her and I replied to his request, "Later tonight, come to my home and bring your materials. I have to go now, I'll talk to you soon, buddy."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye."

I hung up the phone and put it into sleep mode as I got on one knee and watched as she woke up and saw me. I smiled warmly, trying to show friendly intent to this woman. "Hey, miss. You feeling better now?" I asked her. She rubbed her eyes and then sat there looking at me with a blank and tired look on her face, with cloudy eyes. I began to smile as I rubbed the back of my head, my cheeks slightly heating up and blushing. "Well, you sure look like you're on the road to a speedy recovery." I commented. "But why were you wandering out there at 3 in the morning?"

She looked like she took a small blow. "I have nowhere else to be." she slowly admitted to me. I looked into her eyes and looked at her while my heart beat loudly. "If you want, this room could be yours. You can live here with me." I offered to her.

My heart began to beat faster and faster. 'Why is this happening to me? Stop beating so fast, I just met her for god's sake!' I thought to myself. But she **was** very beautiful, and her voice was quiet and precise, yet I could taste the slightest reveal of of beauty in her voice. 'Am I connected to this woman somehow?' She was wearing something similar to a white kimono, with a large V opening further up the outfit and chains upon her cleavage. A tattoo of a bird and a yin yang emblem adorned her forehead, and her cloudy yet sharp grey blue eyes dashed at me. I never was used to having any kind of real commitment to anything except for the arts, but now I was being allured. She smelled of fresh snow and pine, even though there was none of that in Japan at all. "I would like that, mister..." she began as I woke up from my train of thought and I realized we hadn't even introduced.

I smiled warmly aand offered her a hand to get up from the bed. "Nathan Felix. Not a usual name around here, but what can you do?" I introduced as I giggled. "You can call me Nate if you want."

She held my hand and I pulled her up from the bed gently. We were almost touching of the bodies and her head wasn't leaning in, yet her lips were still not that far away. "Akitsu." she simply stated to me. "My name is Akitsu." she specified.

I heard her stomach grumble and mine did as well. I closed my eyes and chuckled. "Perhaps I can make you some breakfeast? Since you are living here." I suggested bashfully.

'Stop being bashful, you'll scare her away.' I scolded myself. "I can cook." she answered thoughtlessly.

"Huh? But I could-" I started to object.

"This would be gratitude for you, Nathan." she interrupted cool mindedly.

I blinked confusedly, for I have never had another woman cook me food before. But I wasn't against the idea of having it done. I smiled. "Well, you can do as you want, Akitsu. Just be careful, there's a lot of art studio stuff down there." I answered to her case.

X

My phone rang again, and it was Minato calling once again. I took the initiative to finsh a few strokes of a paintbrush upon a paper before answering it. "Yo." I greeted.

"Nathan, what's goin' on?" he asked casually.

"I'm not actually busy or anything." I answered as I put the call on blue tooth and kept painting. "So you can visit when you want."

"Oh, yeah, I kinda forgot." he slumped mindlessly.

I smiled and continued to paint. "Knowing you, it's actually not even surprising that you forgot that anymore." I mocked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he pitifully exclaimed at me.

I grinned and kept working. "Nothing bad, stop whining. I'm actually getting used to you being so funny about everything."

"So can I just come to your place?" he asked, trying to get off the comedy routine subject.

"Dude, just bolt over here. I'm going to finish up this painting right now anyway." I snapped, humorously.

"Alright, alright! I'll see you soon." he whined in relief as we hung up.

"Am I going to have to pay for this, Nathan?" Akitsu asked from behind the stand and paper I was using.

I let out a grin and a scoff. "Of course not. I'm doing this free of charge, Akitsu." I answered in a somewhat surprised way. "In terms of both money and other stuff, you aren't paying for this."

I finished up the painting and it was of Akitsu standing in the middle of a small, light blizzard with a sliver moon in the White Mountain sky. Green pine barely hung to the branches and snow and frost littlered the trees and small bushes of flowers and berries. She was not looking at the moon, but rather the was looking affectionately at me- in the sense of whoever would be looking at it, she'd look back at them. I showed this to her, demonstrating how it was easier to make it snowing instead of just trying to make it sunny. "I hope I didn't do anything wrong, Akitsu. You just... seem to be that kind of warm ice person, you know?" I apologized as I saw her ever so slightly smile to me, like an infinitesimal crack in a glacier.

"I like how well you made the setting. Where did you say you were from?" she asked with a very microscopic hint of cuirousity and appreciation. 'Geez, I'm going nuts' I scolded myself.

"I'm from Strawberry, Arizona. It's a small town in the middle of the White Mountains, a pine forest chunk of that state. It snows a lot during the winter up there, and I really liked snow." I explained somwhat hesitantly as I blushed a very light shade.

"You like... snow?" she asked me, as if somehow I had swept her off her feet.

I smiled and got up from my stool in front of the stand in the big studio room I have with an overhead skylight that was 12 feet by 16 feet and three 2 feet by 3 and a half feet windows on the walls. All of my pastels, paper books, charcoal, paints, brushes, pencils and all else were littered upon the shelves and cabinets that Minato and I moved into the place in the previous day. As I looked around and back to Akitsu, I answered her question. "I love the snow."

"That's new. People don't usually think much of the cold as a good thing." she sombered slightly as she looked away.

"I enjoy the cold. I like wind, rain, snow, hail, sleet, all of that good stuff. I like nature coming out to me. If it were snowing tonight, I might just..." I almost finished saying as I noticed that she was absorbing my words, almost devouring them like some chocolate creppe delicacy.

"'You would' what?" she paraphrased and interrogated calmly.

I looked away and scolded myself silently, but my decision was not changed by my sudden flux of logical thinking around a woman. "Akistu, I would kiss you." I blurted. "Even though we just met, I would be romantically inclined to you if there was snow. Call me weird, but that's how I think."

My phone vibrated and So Demanding played in my pocket. I was alarmed as I answered it rapidly, trying to keep as calm as possible. "Minato, hey. What's up, now?" I asked in a greeting.

"I'm at the front yard, where are you?" he asked and explained.

"I'm in that art studio room, where we unloaded all of my art stuff." I answered as I looked to Akitsu, with some affection in my eyes. "I'll be in the living room with you in just a second."

I hung the phone up and looked to Akitsu. "Um, could you do me a huge favor?"

"What is it, Nathan?" she asked with what I could almost swear was a sparkle in her eyes, even though they were unchanged and emotionless otherwise.

"Can you stay in here? I'm going to be with a friend of mine in the other room, so I'll be busy helping him study for a little while." I elaborated.

"Is he a college student?" she asked in response.

"No, he's studying for the entrance exam to a college he wants to go to, I think it was... Shinto Teito U. " I explained. "I've been helping him study for months, and its gotten to the point where I could say he'd get in very soon."

She was looking at that painting I made of her, as if she could truly feel that environment around her. Her skin showed goosebumps, but mostly soft goosebumps. Those were the kind that were the happy kind, like a combination of a Bob Ross artistic tape and few hours of listening to TLC and Prince, or looking into your best memories and the better half of yourself. Akitsu liked that painting very much, and I'm glad I didn't charge her like I would most commissions and customers. I felt her with my eyes, and I could almost hear her begin to have an emotional thought in her head, like ice being covered in coffee with how supple it is when it melts. "I know that there is a small chance of snow tonight, from my weather application on the phone." I announced to her. "In the time I am with my friend, pick out a frame design for that painting, okay? And then... we'll see if it snows tonight. Sound good?" I asked her, my voice starting to become syruppy.

She had stars twinkle in her emotionless face, and even that became moulded into something of beauty and excitement for the night. Her breathing was silent, but I could tell her heart was racing just as much as mine was. "Yes." she answered. "It sounds good, Nathan."

I walked into the room where Minato was waiting for me and I smiled while wiping my hands with a hankercheif in my back pocket. Walking over to him, I was glad I met the guy. He was actually a lot of fun to be with. "Hey, Minato! Glad you're here, this place is too quiet without the sound of someone else here." I both truthfully told and falsely told, for I had company that I was hoping to not reveal to him yet. For all I knew, she might rub him the wrong way and scare him away. Knowing Minato, the act of scaring him wasn't going to be difficult, he's still a little soft skinned and easy to freak out.

"Hey, Nathan. Are we going to...?" he asked skeptically.

"Yeah, yeah!" I answered vigorously as I walked us over to the kitchen. "There's free space here, we could use it."

XXXXXXX

I was walking Minato back to the apartment complex that he lived in, because he had asked me to accompany him for protection. As we began walking from the palace, I gave him a look of confusion. "Since when do you need me to walk you home?"

He shrugged a bit and started to laugh it off like he usually does, with his eyes closed and his hand rubbing the back of his head. "I don't know, to be honest. Things just seemed eerie tonight, so I wanted you to come with me in case of a mugger or something." he pitifully answered.

"Who would mug you? You're not too rich, and your phone can easily be replaced." I bluntly asked, revoking his logic.

Minato slowly palmed his face in a self scolding way. "Besides, I think that you shouldn't be afraid. This area is actually peaceful at night and in the morning, so don't be so afraid." I continued. "I've got your back, man."

He smiled at me and I looked at my phone for the time. It read: 8:30 p.m. I looked to the weather app for Akitsu's sake and... it showed the impossible. It read: 30% chance of snow; cloudy. I looked up to the sky and put my phone to sleep to show that there were clouds gatheed all about, and it was colder this evening. 'What? But it's March.' I thought to myself. 'What is this, God's heartwarming time?' I walked with him, talking to him about the weather and how strange it was. Then the conversation became about strange things occuring, shifted into the kinds of movies we've seen, and as we got to his place, the conversation about who was a better candidate for the next voice actor of a character on the next Final Fantasy game that he and I saw an ad for would be. We came up to his building, and I stood there with him. "Well, man, it's home sweet home." I said to him. "I'll see you tomorrow if I can, I'll be a little preoccupied."

"'Preoccupied'? With what?" he asked me. "I've never seen you doing much aside from sleeping and keeping up with your stuff being shipped from America." he went on.

"I'm going to be making myself public, opening myself for commisions and a good day's give and take." I answered with a smile. "I've got a good studio, might as well use it."

"Oh, well, are you going to need help? I mean, I have free time and I'll be able to-" he began to babble.

"Minato. I'll be alright, man. I'm good at my thing, I promise you. Text me any and all requests for commisions, you'll get a discount." I declared to him softly yet sternly as I walked away. "30 % off!"

"Just 30?" he asked.

"If you're a regular, and you're good with it, it'll add to 40%! Goodnight!" I called out as I began to walk my way home, slowly and doing as much as I can to give the snow its good time. 'Come on, just snow. At least something special, just this once. Even though it is **March**... Oh well.' I thought to myself as I recieved a text message from Johnathan.

It was a picture of Vegeta from Dragon Ball Z, with a fishface and no hair, in a sissy fighting stance. In white words, it spelled out: "Vegeta, look! Bald people!"

I put my phone to sleep as I chuckled from the message, and the chuckling became laughter. "F**king Johnathan." I said to myself as I came close to my house. "Okay, Nathan, think... It's March, and it might actually snow, all in order to give you a chance to sweep some woman off her feet; all in which you found looking at your house at 3 o'clock in the morning. And now she's going to be living in your non-expensive palace for free. You're insane." I kept saying to myself as I walked into the house and wiped my feet.

"Akitsu!" I called out for her. "Akitsu? I'm home. Hey, it actually looks like it's going to snow tonight, so perhaps we could watch for..." I called and stopped as I recieved a text from Minato.

It read:"It's snowing now! Are you seeing this?" I looked over and walked outside. Sure enough, it was lightly snowing. Sprinkling white frozen water was falling upon us, in the early Spring. I was getting really excited, almost freaking out. "How is it...? Where's—?" I asked as I saw Akistu stand in the middle of the front yard, as if waiting for me to see something that she made. I looked to her and then my heart became like a drum, beating repetitively and loudly while making vibrations that I could slightly feel in my chest. I became excited and somehwat repetivively in melancholy, for I have been in many situations similar to this. Hopefully, nothing bad would happen. 'This is a dream' I thought to myself. 'I'm dreaming up all of this crap and I'm **actually** going to get that wakeup call really soon.'

Akitsu looked my way, as if expecting me to look at her as soon as I saw the snow. "Nathan, it's snowing." she said to me, like a little kid showing off a trick, but that kid speaking with very little emotion and showing slightly more than she sounds like. "You told me that you like the snow."

"I do. I actually love it a lot." I responded affectionately. "Akitsu, how is it that you are **demonstrating** the snow to me?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Are you making the snow fall somehow?" I asked as I smiled. "I never thought the X-men were real, nor did I think that Storm would be you, Akitsu." I joked a bit.

"... I'm not an X-man." she replied with the hint of cofusion. "I'm...I'm-"

"—the most beautiful woman on Earth." I interrupted in a complimentary way.

Akitsu was very good at trying to hide it, but I could tell that she was desiring me. I had excited her and made her feel good with that one piece of a sentence. She was breathing very quietly and yet so heavily and I could feel her body heat begin to radiate from her soft, light skin. She was starting to sweat a bit too. That was a good sign to me, and yet one of confusion; that didn't sway me. "Akitsu..." I started to say as we got close to one another. "I don't care how the snow came around."

"Nathan—"she calmly and nearly emotionally gasped.

"—I'm not going to try and force you. If you want to start something with me, I'd love it... but it's your choice." I finished and interrupted.

She looked into my eyes and I could feel that underneath the masterful efforts to keep it hidden under an icy corona, she was melting inside, and her heart was falling for me. I was doing my best to keep calm, but deep down I desired her and wanted her love. "My ashikabi!" She strongly cried out as she kissed me deep, our tongues dancing in one another's mouths.

'Ashikabi? I never heard that word before. Perhaps it just means "heart" or "love" in another language.' I thought in the furthest reaches of my mind as I kept kissing her. Then came the most theatrical moment of the kiss. Wings of icy blue light and ionized frost blazed from her back in arcs, and the symbol above her brow glowed blue and white before it dimmed down and stopped glowing again. She and I stopped kissing and she let out a breath of joy and relief, then began to repetitively breathe like that while keeping a calm look. "Akitsu, sekirei number 7. I'm at your service, now and forever, master." she announced as she looked into my eyes. They were exponentially widened, and my mind wasn't even so much focused on anything other than one thing.

"Call me Nathan, not just 'master', Akitsu." I requested in tamed hysteria.

She smiled a tiny bit and walked into my home after answering me with, "Yes...Nathan."


	3. Initiation

** Author's note: My character's name is not my real name.**

I was in my house, holding the phone in my hand and sitting on the bed of my room. "Ashikabi...Sekirei... What do those words refer to?" I asked myself as my phone began to ring before the strange part came. My phone unlocked and answered itself and a FaceTime started.

"Those words, my dear boy, are VERY important!" an energetic middle aged funnyguy's voice answered at me vigorously.

He has white hair in a so-very-unreal haircut afro and was wearing glasses and an all white suit and tie with something short of a gigantic wizard's mantle cape. He smiled at me from the phone and I looked at him in curiousity. "How so, ?" I asked in a somewhat joking manner. 'Who is this guy, again?' I thought as I heard his immediate reply.

" 'Mr. Insanity'?" he asked with a very energetic laugh. "You are too funny, Nathan Felix. How was the move from America to my wonderful little playground?" he asked provocatively.

My reaction was sharp and my tongue was swift. "How do you know who I am? Who are you, cotton ball?" I interrogated.

Akitsu walked into the room with me and answered, "The director."

"Ah, number 7! How very fortunate that you were winged! And after so many attempts to do it right, as well." the cottonhead on my phone called out to her.

"Thank you, director." she calmly and icily replied to him.

"Hold on, hold on, what is this? Who are you, fluffyhead?!" I barked.

He laughed at me merrily. "I am Hiroto Minaka, the Game Master, the Director of the Sekirei Plan! And you are a player in my city soanning game!" he cried out pompously.

"What is-" I began.

"Get a good night's rest, young Ashikabi! You will need it!" he gave farewell as he hung up and my phone was back asleep.

I wanted to try and crush my phone in my hand, I was so angry and so agitated. But I kept as cool as I could, for I was never any good at angry displays of testosterone. 'This is going to be... undignnified, I can tell already.' I thought to myself as I saw Akitsu sitting with me on our bed. **Our** bed...

"Nathan, do you know what a Sekirei is?" she asked me.

"I don't really need to know the specifics, Akitsu. But I would like to know." I answered with a sigh of cooldown and a meek expression in my face.

Akitsu held up her hand and an algific wind and ionized ice gathered in her palm. "We are 108 in total, and I have control over ice and all cold. That is my power." she explained. "We all have different powers, some are better than others. I am number 7, so I am the seventh strongest in all."

I did little more than listen and look into her cool, yet frigorific eyes. It was comforting to hear her talk and explain to me now, and I was glad that she and I met. "What about when you kissed me? I'm an Ashikabi, what is that?" I asked.

"A human that a sekirei kisses becomes an Ashikabi, which is basically our master or leader, partner or lover." she explained more. "Upon having an Ashikabi, the sekirei you kiss will have a growth in power and will become 'winged'. Once we become winged, we must fight one another for the prize." she elaborated more for me.

"I see. So, it's like Highlander. The last one standing gets the prize." I paraphrased out loud.

Akitsu nodded to me. "Yes."

"Well, it's simple now." I declared as I held her hand in mine and smiled to her warmly. "We're going to have to win."

"It isn't going to be easy."

"You're number 7, out of 108. 6 and up will be our problem, not the other 101 sekireis." I assured. "We'll need some more Sekireis though, in order to at least help give us some good chances at victory."

She only blinked twice before she said "I know where we could find information about the other unwinged ones." and I yawned a bit.

"Akitsu... I will love to hear it tomorrow morning, I swear. But I'm actually pretty tired, okay?" I asked as I kissed her forehad. "I love you."

She blushed a bit and her eyes sparkled slightly. "You do?" she asked.

I smiled and giggled as I kissed her with tongue again. Her wings of light materialized and shone in the room, illuminating it before they died down. I stopped kissing her and answered, "Yeah, I do. I'm your Ashikabi now, I have to be able to take care of you and love you forever now... Is the winging of a sekirei a sacred pact to you?" I asked.

She nodded as I kissed her hand. "Then that also makes me your husband... well we'll have to also get married too." I slumped.

"... Nathan-!" she gasped as she kissed me again and lied with me on the bed. "I love you."

"And I love you, Akitsu..." I said as I fell asleep very quickly. Akitsu was holding me in our slumber, I could tell. I never knew much about women, but I did know that she would never let me go; either in one way or another.

Now it was a whole new connection to this woman, to Akitsu. I was in love with her, and I felt so warm in her icy embrace. She inticed me and she interested me; and the funny part is, we barely met the day before. Someone could imagine how she and I shall be during the actual working parts and gears of Minaka's little idiotic plan.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Ashikabi." a stern woman's voice echoed in the silence of his dream.

Then came light, and I was standing on top of a building in the middle of the city. No clouds were in the big and empty sky as I saw a woman. Her eyes were shaded from the high contrast of white light, and her white-blonde hair blew in the wind. She was wearing a black gi and a cloak with the hood down made of reflective and yet dark fabric. The inside of the cloak looked to be a crystalline violet color, and her gi had markings of ritualistic appearance of that same violet gradient, and her oobi was a dark grey. I looked around, then back to her. "I have been dying to meet you." she continued.

"Who are you?" I asked.

She smiled sleazily and her eyes illumnated from the harsh shade that once concealed them. They were almond shaped and very finely toned, and her irises were a lighter purple tinted shade of black. They complimented her red-pink lips and her medium sized smooth nose and smaller ears. "I'm 3^$%#..." she answered gleefully, the second word of her sentence blotted out by the sound of grinding of magnets that would usually repel eachother, the sound of the laws of nature crying out in agony. I woke up next to Akitsu, not even able to comprehend the dream I had that night. I went back to sleep and had no dreams before she and I woke up at the same time.

"Good morning, Nathan." Akitsu greeted with a small smile.

"Good morning, Akitsu." I greeted with a girn and a kiss on the cheek. "Can you make breakfeast for me? I'm going to be slightly preoccupied by something, so...?"

She let out a breath through her nostrils in laughter and said, "Yes, Nathan." and we got up out of bed. I walked my way down to the west wing of the palace and into a big studio-sized room. Except this one wasn't like the east wing's studio. This room had some of the stuff I had hoped never to use again. They were all in crates marked by black stamped letters that read: "confidential". I opened them all after 30 minutes of long and hard effort. I took a deep breath and examined all of it.

"All right..." I griped as I took a deep breath. "Let's get this workshop up and running." I finished as I began to start rearranging stuff.

XXXXXXXX

"Akitsu? I didn't know you could cook so well for this." I complimented her. She had cooked pancakes and some hashbrowns for my breakfeast, which I didn't expect- being American cuisine in a foreign country.

"I have learned much about cooking and wifely duties in MBI." she clarified. "I can cook any way you'd like me to, master- I mean, Nathan." she slipped.

"You can call me whichever you'd like. But when we're in public or in a battle of the sekireis, don't use my name, okay?" I requested. "I'd like to keep myself secret from the sekirei plan in terms of the other Ashikabis out there."

"Why?" she asked questioningly.

"I might make many enemies with my ambitions, and with your power alone, **before** we find other sekireis. Imagine the danger we're in if people know who I am." I answered.

She looked at nme with the slightest crack of curiousity and skepticism. "I understand. Do you have some sort of mask or costume to go with a secretive persona?" she joked a little.

"Not a mask, and not a cotsume." I hinted. "But I did take some stuff from America."

I ate my breakfast with ravaging hunger and desire for the taste. It was warm, delicious, salty and syruppy; which I have only experienced in so many places. As I took bites, I made sounds of immense pleasuree from my mouth and I could swear that I had hearts in my eyes when I looked at Akitsu. She didn't really look any different from how she usually does, just calmer now. Her straw colored hair was kept in some sort of flashy yet kept spiky and pompous style, and she looked like she was adjusting from intense mourning to the calm after the ravaging storm. But she looked at me as I looked at her, and I could almost swear she was going to burst if I did so much as sweet talk to her. I was tempted to try that, but when ice melts, it stays melted. Something told me that I shouldn't do anything ridiculous. As I was lost in my train of thought and my eating, I was just as quickly woken up by the sound of "So Demanding" playing from my rumbling and shaking phone. Minato was calling me, and I was inclined to answer.

"Yello?" I asked.

"Hey, Nathan. Did you see the snow last night?" he asked.

"Yeah, man. I'm not gonna deny, I had a great time with the snow. Reminds me of good time." I answered.

"Oh yeah, you like the weather; I forgot for a second." he blurted. "Hey, are you going anywhere today?"

I looked to Akitsu, and I answered, "Not until later in the morning."

"Oh, okay. Are you doing commissions?" he aked in reply.

"No, actually, I'm going to do stuff with my..." I began to say as I whispered to Akitsu: "Girlfriend when with my friend." then I spoke up to Minato "Girlfriend." hesitantly.

" 'Girlfriend?' Since when did you get a girlfriend?" he asked.

"I did a commission for her, and she and I just clicked." I answered to the best of my ability.

"Wow, I'm impressed. I never thought you were one for the ladies." he congratulated.

"Doubly so for you, brother." I joked.

"Hey!" he exclaimed, as if he took a hard blow.

I laughed a bit and said, "Bro slice, I gotta go. I'll see you later, I think."

"Okay, bye."

"Laters." I gave a farewell as I hung up the phone.

Akitsu and I gave eachother humored looks. "Girlfriend?" she asked.

"Only with him." I justified with a smile. "We'd better head out to that place you said you knew."

We finished breakfast and I walked into the other studio room, and began to open up my stuff for use. "Alright, you guys. Let's get rocking."

Minutes later, I walked out to the front yard to meet Akitsu- who was waiting for me. "What is it that you have?" she asked while examining me with her eyes.

I was wearing silver and violet blue painted plasteel armour for my arms, legs and torso above an under-protection safety suit of skin tight kevlar laced fabric. Twin knife sheathes with hilts sticking out of them were on my thighs, and a longer sheath was on my back. I had a belt with many compartments around my waist, and my helmet was an armored X-visor helmet with orange-red plexiglass visual for the visor. There was a microphone for my helmet, so I could talk clearly and modulate my voice if needed as well. "It's something that I bought years ago. Thankfully, I grew into it." I answered.

"...You're going to try and fight as well." she immediately read.

I blinked in surprise. "Are you a telepath too?" I asked.

"Nathan, you wouldn't be safe doing this." she warned cooly. "Sekireis have powers, and better physiology."

I smiled and held her cheek, as she looked through my visor, even though it was reflective. "I'm better than most, I can do this." I assured. "This armor has protected me from many things."

She was quiet as I could see that she was calmer and agreeing with me. "Very well, master. Follow me." she directed as she jumped to the north. Her leap took her extremely high and extremely far- a good similarity would be a Kryptonian jumping, like in the Man of Steel movie. I smiled as I mentally made the rockets in my back and the calves of my armor ignite and flew my way to her.

We were going at the same speed, but she and I were at such different lengths. I was using technology, and she had naturally denser bones and leg strength capable of making the bounds and leaps that she was making. The city was blurring back around us, until the area become more rural and less packed with buldings and skyscrapers. She and I kept looking to one another, as if she was amazed that a human could ever keep up with her. She can't have been **amazed **as much as surprised, for she still was keeping the straight face on me. "Stop." she directed as she stopped jumping and I touched down next to her on the asphalt ground.

"So, which one of these is it?" I asked her through my microphone. "Or is it underground?"

She pointed towards an inn that looked like a traditional build of a Japanese big two story hotel. The tile on the roof was a brown-red and the bilding on the outside was brown sprucewood and white stone. There was a nicely made brick wall and an entryway around the place and there was a small garden in the front with entry steps. "An inn?" I asked. "Is your source of info going to be a person?" I kept questioning.

"I'm going to need you to not be concealing your face when we enter. I'm not really well liked in this place, not without you as validation." she warned me as we began to walk to the inn. The sign had one **very** important writing on it outside.

It said: Maison Izumo inn.

XXXXXXXXXX

Flashback.

The rain was pouring heavily and the sky was black with the night and the clouds, the smell of ozone and old time were in the air, mized in with the feel of the asphalt and the taste of blood. I was standing taller, and six unconscious men were littered around me. I was breathing through my nostrils and my mouth fairly heavily from exhaustion. "Hooh! Man, they were a handful." I whooped out as I brushed myself off and noticed a guy around my age looking at me in awe, a few smaller wounds still undressed or treated.

"Ah...ah..." he bubbled.

"What, are you going to keep being terrorized or are you going to say something?" I asked. "You can't be all weirdo on people who saved you from a beating."

He studdered a bit and zapped into a good posture and bowed in apology. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-!" he started to cry out.

"Chill, kid, you aren't going to get far in life just by being all apologetic and crazy. You have to be able to get and grab for yourself sometimes." I interrupted. "What's you name, kid?"

"Minato. Minato Sahashi!" he blubbered more.

"Calm. Down. I'm not going to demand you to fork over money or... Wait, 'Minato Sahashi'?" I asked.

"Yeah, that's me. Wait, am I famous?" he asked.

"Not where I've been, you aren't. I know that name, I'm your roommate. Those mid-grade apartments with that freaking butthole stingypants landlord?" I referred to.

"Wait. You must be-" he started.

"Nathan Felix, yeah. Well, well, I never expected to meet you like this, kid." I chuckled as shook his hand.

He smiled and closed his eyes in what I saw was anticipation. "Oh, yeah." he chuckled. "It's nice to meet you!"

"Hey, listen, you want to head back and get a drink? You kinda need it after what just went down." I offered.

"I'm 20, I'll be able to drink in a few months."

I scowled in irritation and facepalmed. "Ugh, right. Well, maybe next time I suppose, broseph."


	4. Ignition

"Hello. Welcome to Maison Izumo." a nice woman with purple-perywinkle hair greeted sweetly to me, as she frowned without too much insult or repulse to Akitsu.

"Hey, thank you for the welcoming. I thought we'd be attacked. Now I feel like I brought all of my gear for nothing." I thanked her. "My name is-"

"Master, we should try to move quickly in and out." Akitsu hinted to me.

The woman blinked at me confusedly. "Oh, my. Are you her...?"

"The word your looking for is 'boyfriend', and yes. Or are you looking for 'Ashikabi'?" I asked her and answered her.

She sighed and smiled with her eyes closed. "Well, you don't have to worry about any hostilities. She was such a nightmare to us without any partners, and now she's... oh dear, where are my manners?" she started.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Mine are absent as well. Nathan Felix. I moved here from America half a year ago, I settled into my house two days ago." I introduced with a quick spark of info.

She smiled and giggled a bit. "Miya Ayama, wife of the late Takehito Ayama." she introduced with an introductory short bow, as I followed suit.

" Miya, we would like information." Akistu told her politely, yet fridgedly. "Is number 2 here?"

'Number 2? Geez, I hope she doesn't pick a fight, I can only do so much.' I thought to myself, trying to council my sudden burst of fear. "Yes, she can't leave the inn, Akistu, you know that." Miya answered sternly.

Akitsu looked to me and it was as if she could see my thoughts like the page of an open book. "She won't pick a fight with you, Nathan." she assured me without much honey in her voice.

"I hope not. Miya, can I see her? I'll need to avoid much conflict, I can only do so much." I said to her.

She told me where her room was, and I walked my way to the rooms of the inn complex, cautiously. I kept my senses sharp as I came across a wall that was next to the bathroom door. 'Focus, but calm down, Nathan. Take a deep breath.' I thought as I took a breath and knocked on the wall. "Excuse me? I think this is the right wall? Don't worry, I'm not MBI, I'm just looking for info." I called out, trying not to alarm this "number 2".

No reply came to me, only a few minutes of silence as I stood there, waiting for at least some kind of lonely idiot being all creeper on me. Silence filled the hall as I turned around and began to walk away.

_Clack.!_ I turned around to see that no one was there, in front of the unchanged or unmoved wall. I looked to my left and to my right: A window and a bathroom door with just a handle, no doorknob. I let out a breath of relief. 'Probably just the air conditioning up in this place, with the tiles and whatnot.' I thought to myself as I turned back around with my eyes closed before I opened them again.

There was a pumpkin-red haired woman with clear lensed big glasses in a pink pajama suit, like a longhua or something. Her face was really close to mine and her nose was almost touching mine; her eyes were unmoved when looking at mine. We simply stood there, sharp minded and quietly, with deafening silence. I reached for one of my thigh hoslters very very slowly and quietly, and she asked me, "You're number 7's Ashikabi, aren't you?" in what I found, to my surprise, was an energetic, yet beautiful voice, like one for a voice actress or the pink Power Ranger.

"That's right. " I answered as I took the hilt in my hand and slightly took out the knife. The thing was, it wasn't with a metal blade. It was the same size as a combat knife's balde: 8 inches, but it was a rectangular prism of glass. Upon my weilding it, the glass glowed white and wtarted to release neon white smoke or steam. In my right hand was my "knife", and my left was empty. "You must be the source of good info that I started to hear about, miss." I discussed with her.

She smiled. "Put the weapon away, Nathan Felix. I'm not going to try to harm you." she told me. "And yes, I am Sekirei number 2. Matsu."

I put the weapon away and said, "Can't blame me, I was told that I might accidentally bring hostilities."

"Only if Akitsu came here alone. But you're nicer, so I'm inclined to help." she explained as she pushed on the left half of the wall and it turned horizontally. This revealed a dark room with a cushion on the floor for bedding, and keyboards and lit up medium sized screens everywhere. She turned her head to me and smiled. "Come in, we'll need you to be the one to look with me for your info."

I walked into the room with her and she closed the wall/door. She sat down and huddled up to the center keyboards on the middle wall. "What are you looking for?" she asked cruiously.

"Unwinged sekireis." I answered. "I need to find where they are."

She looked to me with a concerned and confused blank look. "I can't just do that. This has rules, and guidelines. Have you seen any in dreams or daydreams, or perhaps nightmares?" she questioned.

I remembered the dream I had about that woman on the building, and the empty sky. "I saw one, in a dream. She was wearing a cloak with the hood down and all dark and violet colors. She had white-blonde hair and eggplant colored eyes. A gi with ritual markings was under her cloak, and that cloak was almost hypnotic, reflective. Like a mirror moon." I described in simplistic yet great detail.

She smiled. "There you go. If and when you have more dreams, perhaps we can get a search started." she suggested as she typed the keys rapidly and a picture of that woman blinked onto the screen.

I gave a look of affirmation to the screen. "Yes, that's her. Do you know who and where she is?" I asked in confirmation.

"I wouldn't recommend it, Nathan." she analyzed and inferred from the information. "Midasu is known as the Sekirei of Darkness, and she can be found anywhere, as long as someone she's interested in looks for her." she answered.

"What's her number?" I asked. "If she's in the top ten, I have something to worry about."

She looked up to me and adjusted her glasses, and the glare of the screens reflected from her glasses, concealing her eyes. " She isn't, trust me. Her number is 26."

"Good to know. Before I go... I am curious about one thing." I stated suspiciously. "What can **you** do?"

"Me?" she asked innocently.

"You're number 2. Out of 108, that seems like a pretty lofty spot, with only so much shade from number one." I told her.

"It's not that plain and simple. I can control technology with my mind and I know how to work out any problem and I'm a master hacker." she answered plainly. "I'm the Sekirei of wisdom."

I smiled and held her hand in mine before kissing it. "You're Technopathic? Might I say that is actually **very** attractive?" I sweet spoke to her. "I'm a technologic nerd myself, you know. I'm also a graduate from 5 years at Academy of the Arts, very good at what I do."

She smiled in a pleased and yet devious way as she let out a giggle. "My my, you know your way around, I see." she replied. "Perhaps I might be inclined to see your toys sometime."

"I was told you can't leave the inn." I bluntly argued.

"I have ways, Nathan. Trust me." she reminded me. "Number 2, remember?"

I smiled. "I await to see your 'ways'. But I must depart." I replied with slight excitement as I walked out of the room and found Akitsu standing a few feet away from the wall, looking to me with her burning icy eyes.

I smiled upon seeing her. "Hey, we found one." I announced to her as I noticed that she held my helmet in her hands. "Oh, thanks for holding it, Akitsu." I thanked as I kissed her cheek lightly. I took the helmet in my hands as we began to walk out.

"It's strange, master." she vent out to me.

"What is?" I asked. "Are you referring to the cease of hostilities towards you?"

She nodded as we passed Miya. I waved to her, and she waved back sweetly. "I have always been a subject of fearful and belittling gossip, a ghost story. Now, it's just confusing to me." she told me, therapeutically.

"Akitsu, you shouldn't worry too much. I'm going to be the subject of gossip pretty soon too. I'm the only one who is actually inserting himself into combat if need be, no one has the resources to do so." I assured her, bringing up a point to help me along. We walked outside and I put my helmet on, while I looked to the sky. "And you should just be good at keeping that sexy and icy persona of yours anyway."

"Why, master?" she asked hesitantly.

I smiled and my rockets in my suit ignited. "Because you're going to be famous." I answered gleefully as I flew to the rooftops. My heart began to race as I landed on the roof of a skyscraper half a mile away, and Akitsu momentarily landed on her feet gracefully next to me.

XXXXXXXXXXX

I landed on top of a 23 story building with all reflective windows, must have been a company building or something. I looked around, looking left and right, turning my body, and letting out a sigh of disappointment. We've been searching for her for a few hours now, and it was starting to become a huge drag. "Have I been following the wrong sign for a goose chase, or looking for a glass needle in an invisible haystack?" I asked myself out loud through my microphone.

"I don't think I'm **that **invisible, Mr. he-man." an excited, yet femme fatale voice answered to my rambling.

I jumped forward and high enough to do a somersault and turn around at the same time. I took out my twin arc-knives from their holsters in reaction to my surprise. She was just as the picture and the vision described her. White-blonde hair, ritualistic and yet beautiful attire, and those dark eyes. She held her hands up, and exclaimed, "Calm down, calm down! You've been looking for me, I could tell." she sleazed as she smiled deviously and almost hungrily at me.

"You're number 26, Midasu." I stated as I put my weapons away and took my helmet off, revealing my face. "I saw you before, in a dream."

She gave me a look of curiosity, with a slightly tilted head and a blank feel to her eyes. "Well, I know I didn't ever hypnotize you. You must be... oh!" she exclaimed gleefuly as she bounced over to me and got really close. "My ashikabi!"

"Y-yeah." I studdered in confusion, due to her ecstatic nature. "My name's Nathan Felix."

Midasu looked into my eyes and giggled nervously. "I'm going to need a favor, hon."

"What favor?" I asked as I noticed twin women land on the rooftops a few buildings away. They wore S&M gear, one wore pink and the other wore purple. It was my assumption that they were sekireis, and they were in league against us.

"Could you wing me really quickly and help me take care of a few pests?" she asked with a giggle.

"Oh, yeah, no problem." I answered as we kissed and she held my cheeks. Wings of black light and purple fire emerged from her back as I could feel her body power up, and she and I were blushing and smiling at each other. "Shall we?" I asked.

"Master, I know these sekireis. They hunt the unwinged ones." Akitsu told me as she landed in front of us and she noticed that I had winged her.

"Thank you for the bio, Akitsu. Do me a solid and show Midasu the palace when we get home." I told her as I heard a ringing from inside my helmet, which was a bluetooth linked indicator for a phone call. That meant only one thing. Minato.

"Master, kiss me. It will power me up as it did Midasu. We will meet you home when we are done." Akitsu suggested.

I hesitantly looked back to the direction of our home, then back to them. "Only, ward them off, do not pursue or try to do anything to piss an ashikabi off." I ordered as I kissed Akitsu deeply. "Okay?"

"Yes." she calmly answered with a small nod.

"I love you. Return home **immediately** after this." I said to her as I put my helmet on and ignited my propulsion rockets to 200%. I was flying at mach 1, and I was home within the span of a minute and a half.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Minato, hey!" I answered the phone, wearing a white t-shirt under a jean coat and jean pants.

"Nathan, what's up? You busy?" he asked.

"No, actually, I just got home." I answered as an exposition. "What's up with you, man? You planning to get some quick studying in before tomorrow?" I asked with a smile as I put in a bluetooth earpiece and I moved the last piece of my new furniture into the living room.

Now I had four leather couches and one leather chair behind a glass top rectangular coffee table, all in front of a 24 inch by 30 inch flat screen television. My dining room had a rosewood rectangular dining table that was 25 inches wide and 49 inches long, with one seat at each head of the table, and eight seats on each side. Along with that was a wine cabinet, and a sculpture of me, wearing no clothes and holding Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, to the heavens. the living room also had a scultpre, except it was one that I had made beforehand. This one was of Akitsu in very little fabric, like a sexy Greek-or-roman dress, and flowers in her hair, looking down while in a 3/4 pose and running her fingers through her hair. "Actually, Nathan, remember when you said that I can ask for a favor?" Minato asked me hesitantly.

"Yeah. Wait, are you okay? Minato, what is it?" I interrogated in a rushing and worried way.

"Yeah, everything's still fine. I'm just... what if I don't make it again?" he asked me.

'So, he needs therapy.' I thought to myself. "Minato, come down here. I'll help you out with this as much as possible, I promise you."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm **very** sure, Minato. I'm your best friend, remember?" I asked him. "You and I have been there for each other for months now. I haven't left you yet, and I don't plan to now." I assured him.

He was quiet for a few seconds. "I'll be down there to study in a few minutes. Can I have some food too?"

I smiled and chuckled. "No problem, buddy." I answered. Immediately after that, Midasu and Akistu walked in through the door.

"Nathan, we're home." Akitsu called out icily as I ran up and hugged her tightly, burying my face in her embrace.

My eyes were closed tightly, and I held her tighter. "Thank god." I breathed out in relief.

She held me in her arms softly before we let go of one another. She gave me a faint smile and she blushed lightly. "Nathan, you don't have to worry so much. I'm number 7, remember?" she asked as I became flustered in embarrassment.

"I-I uh, I'm sorry. It's just, I'm kind of protective over women and I get nervous and-" I started to say until she kissed me lightly on the lips.

"Calm down, Nathan." she told me.

"Yeah." I agreed as she saw the sculpture of her.

She walked over and examined it closely, like some sort of art critic or an exhibitor. Her eyes showed much interest in how I had done with it, and **what** I had done with it. " Nathan, I'm curious." she pondered.

"Nate's fine too." I suggested.

"Where did you learn how to do these things? Paint like you did, sculpt like you did." she questioned me, as if my style of art was so strange to her.

I scratched my head and began to count with my fingers. "I took art classes as my electives in high school, multimedia classes in high school, and after I graduated I went to Academy of the Arts for 5 years; while at the same time I was learning on the side from my dad and from my art teacher from high school. I'm not the **best** artist in the world, but I can get around pretty good." I explained to her.

Midasu looked at me with interest, and an evil smile curled to life from her mouth. "Say, Nate..." she called to me.

"What's up?" I asked her in a morbid sense of curiosity.

"Say that I wanted you to paint something or make something for me? Would I get it for free?" she asked me in a sexy way.

"I guess. I'm not going to charge a sekirei." I said hesitantly, as if she should have assumed it.

_Ring-a-ling!_ My doorbell rang, and I knew perfectly well who it was. 'Minato.' I said in my mind. "Midasu, there's a lot of rooms in this place. Pick a bedroom and take a nap, I have a feeling we'll take all night, you'll need your energy." I assured her as she sped away to a random bedroom and I answered the door.

Minato was standing in front of my door, holding his book bag, and wearing a white long sleeve shirt and slightly baggy pants; and he smiled to me as we hugged shortly and I said "Come in, come in!"

We walked into the house and he looked around, impressed by the new furniture. "Nice stuff!" he spat out in awe.

"Yeah, I had a little bit of an inspiration for the picks." I clarified with a gleeful grin. "Hey, Akitsu?" I called out.

Akitsu walked into the living room, wearing a dress just like the one on her sculpture, and this one looked like it was made purely out if ice crystals. "Yes, Nathan?" she asked me in an icy hot tone of voice when she saw Minato. "Who's this?"

Blood spurted from his nose, and I gave him a tissue to cover it. "This is Minato Sahashi. I told you about him a couple days ago, remember?"

"Oh, yes, the man who's going into college." she recited and paraphrased as she held out a hand for a handshake. "I'm Akitsu. Nathan's girlfriend." she introduced to him rather sweetly with all of that frost in her voice.

They got introduced, and I told Minato, "Come with me, there's a room I'd like to spend a bit of time in while we study."

We walked our way through the central part of the palace and there was a big room that had mostly windows as the walls and a treasury of weights and tools for excercise and wooden weapons for training and hard practice. "Okay, I'm going to be multitasking with you." I told him as I got shirtless and we walked over to where I'd be lifting.

XXXXXXXX

"Okay, Minato. Shakespeare's work of two star-crossed lovers." I challenged his memory, as I did push-ups while on a handstand.

"Romeo and Juliet." he bolted an answer.

" 'There is more between...' " I snapped.

" 'Heaven and Earth'... is this going to help me?" he asked.

"Yes, it will. To be worthy of a good education, you have to show that you know your stuff to begin with. Anyone can learn base math or language. It takes someone with ambition to get the good stuff, like culture, social studies, politics, mechanical engineering, or anything else." I both explained and grunted. "Take for example, me. I had to learn more than base high school stuff to get into Academy of the Arts."

"Like what?" he asked.

"Multimedia, technological interface, and martial arts, as well as latin." I answered as I got out of my handstand exercise and put my shirt back on.

We stopped studying as we walked out of the room, and sat down on the couch in the living room. "You're going to make it, trust me." I assured him.

"I hope so." he sighed as Akitsu handed us bottles of orange and mango soda.

"Thanks, honey." I thanked her with a smile. She smiled coolly and frigidly to me, and walked away. "Minato, I am almost certain that you'll outdo everyone else, with how we've been preparing you for so long." I reassured him.

"How are you so certain?" he asked me as I took a drink.

"Because I've been working hard for ten years. I've been devoting myself to doing what I do, and because of that, I graduated high school with a regent's diploma, made it into Academy of the Arts for almost all 5 years a full ride, and now I'm making good money from commissions and living in a **palace** that cost me as much as a standard house. If **I** could do all of that, imagine how much better you'll do." I sternly replied to his question.

We looked at each other for a few minutes and we were silent while taking our drinks. It was then that Minato smiled at me. "Nathan, I'm starting to consider you like a brother." he admitted to me. "My sister was never too much of a help to me, and my mom does only so much as give me some money as an allowance. But you've actually helped me out a lot."

I smiled, showing teeth. "Are you going to propose to me?" I joked.

He was flipping about and babbling loudly, as I began to laugh hysterically. "I'm only kidding, man!" I laughed and sputtered. "But I actually think you'd better get home and get your rest, you have a big day ahead of you."

"Oh, right! Well, wish me luck tomorrow." he told me as he walked out through the door.

When Minato was gone, I walked over to the kitchen and put down my drink. I was feeling hopeful and excited for the guy, he was going to make it into college and we would celebrate: I could just feel it. 'Come on, kid. You can do it.' I thought to myself as I saw Akitsu walk in. "Oh, hey." I greeted to her. "Are you getting tired?"

"No." she answered.

"I gotcha. Well, I must say that you look absolutely stunning with that ensemble." I complimented. "I really like it."

She blushed a bit, her face still emotionless and icy. "Nathan..."

"What is it?" I asked in a concerned tone.

She looked away, as if trying to hide her flustered appearance, like it wasn't modest. "When will we get married?"

"Isn't it obvious?" I asked her. "We're going to get married as soon as I learn how it works."

She looked at me, surprised in a way. "Really?"

"**But** I can't get learning how to marry and all that just yet. I have to worry about you, Midasu, and whoever comes with me into the fire of this game." I clarified. "If I ever chose to get married, it will be to you."

"... I love you, Nathan." she admitted.

I grinned humorously and warmly at the same time. "I can tell." I joked as I walked my way to the shower room. "Do you want to join me?" I offered.

"I'm not one for hot water. I'll bathe later." she answered in monotone.

I bathed anyway, and I lingered in the hot water longer. My mind was flooded with all kinds and manners of thoughts, ideas, and calculations. Most of them revolved around certain subjects, mainly the Sekirei plan, the fact that I was making myself a more **active** ashikabi, and how fast everything was going down. This was the ignition of what would be a massive conflagration; a star-burst or a supernova of drama, power, victories or losses. I took deep breaths, as I closed my eyes tightly and asked myself out loud, "Am I doing the right thing?"

"I'd say you are." Matsu's voice answered behind me.

I literally picked up an arc-sword and swung vertically behind me, as a reaction to the surprising answer. Thankfully, I only slashed through a blue gradient 3-d holographic Matsu. She giggled and smiled. "I'm sorry for surprising you." she apologized. "I told you that I'd be interested in checking out your stuff, right?" she justified.

"I'd say I am surprised, but you **are** technopathic. Holographic interface, 3-d hardlight design? I'm surprised you didn't teleport with, like, a giant transporter or something." I admitted as I put the arc-sword down and dried myself off out of the shower.

"Miya wouldn't let me build one. That's the only reason why I didn't." she submitted to the statement as I got dressed in my black nano-fabric under armor. "Besides, I couldn't risk MBI finding me."

"Are you a fugitive?" I questioned.

"Can we not talk about that?" she begged in remorse.

"Not a problem... You know I am here if you'd wish for me to be your partner." I suggested to her. "And before you ask, let me just answer." I snapped when I saw her movement of reaction. "I can tell when you are sad, and I know that you've been getting around without your good looks. Otherwise, you'd be winged and piloting a small Death Star around the city with an Ashikabi in tow."

She scoffed. "I'd be piloting something better than a Death Star."

"See my point?" I asked her. "I have resources for you and I can get more."

She looked into my eyes and her hologram touched my chest. "Listen... tell me if you have any more dreams or if you'd like to... you know. Okay?"

"Undoubtedly." I answered as her hologram logged off.

XXXXXXXXXXX

I was in the middle of a giant park landscape, grassy hills and pleasant few-yet-many trees with small ponds here and there. The park would have been nice. That is, if it wasn't in the middle of the night and if I wasn't holding twin arc powered revolvers, and if a girl with short, black bobb cut hair wasn't helping me defend a position against ten sekireis shrouded by the shade of the night and many more strongmen with weapons. "Ugh, what a way to spend my night." I complained through my helmet's microphone as I readied myself for attack.

The girl and I were back to back, and she told me, "Oh, relax, mister. You and I can get through this."

"Unless you are what I hope you are, I doubt we'll make it through the night." I argued as I shot my guns sharply and quickly, successfully downing 6 guys; and then I took out twin arc-sabres and readied myself for another attack.

"I believe the word you're looking for is 'sekirei'?" she asked as she leapt in the air and threw metaphysical forms of energy at them, each impact turning into an explosion that took out 6 or 7 of them. "Don't worry, I am."

I did little more than blink before leaping forward at our assailants; and then I woke up. I was next to a slumbering Akitsu, and she was nude. My eyes became quarters as I slid and slithered out of bed and walked downstairs. Once there, I found an angry Midasu with her arms crossed, frowning at me. "I was just going to wake you up and get ready." I told her.

I knew perfectly well that I needed to find Matsu, immediately.


	5. Say that again?

We strolled into the art studio, and I looked around. "Okay, Midasu, what would you like me to make for you?" I asked as I cracked my knuckles and popped my neck and shoulders, grunting slightly with each notion. "I can paint, oil paint, scuplt, digital draw, animate, charcoal, pastel draw, surrealize, et cetera." I offered as I looked back to her and screamed out in a startled way.

I found that she was naked, and holding her breasts in her arms. She looked at me with so much excitement and such a sleazy and dark expression. Her smile showed all of her intent and extent to what she'd do to meet those juicy expectations of hers. "I want you to do whatever you want of me, either on paper or canvas. Make it high contrast and very dark." she demanded hungrily.

"Oh, I-uh-abehh-um, right." I flustered and babbled, my face as red as a tomato. "Uh, sit on the stool." I directed as she held a fist full of yen notes.

"I'm paying you for these commissions." she announced to me. "I'm a good girl... sometimes." she giggled as I took the money from her. I looked at them to find that she gave me five 100 yen notes.

"You're paying me 500 yen for a commission?" I asked with a raised brow as she sat down on the stool.

"Well, how many pieces of art does 500 get me?" she asked as I checked my phone. Sure enough, John had sent me a picture of a trollface, with the text message saying: Look Vegeta, Asians!

"Twenty five." I answered.

"Make 12 for Akitsu, and 13 for me. Clear, sexy?" she asked me.

I blinked in confusion, and then got my art supplies together on two stands, one on either side. She looked to me and hesitantly exposed her breasts. They were actually D-cups by the look, and with proportionately correct small pink nipples to compliment her light skin. "You look..." I began as I gulped.

"Nathan, you can say whatever you want, just focus on my commission." she commanded.

"Oh, right, sorry Midasu." I apologized as I used a remote control with a touch pad interface to make the surround sound speakers I had just set up the day before play a song that I had fallen in love with so many years ago. The song was introduced to me when I was 12, and it was called "Bang Bang Boogie".

I began to work on a piece of large paper with charcoal sticks, charcoal pencils and paper blending sticks. The music was like an anodyne to all of my momentary fears and troubles. All stress melted away, and there was just the pure joy, the fantastic feel of my hands upon the paper with charcoal staning my fingers, and then there was Midasu. Her body was so nice, and perfect. She was five feet and eleven inches tall, a few insches shorter than myself or Akitsu, but still good. She was slim, curvy, and wavy, and she always looked like she was tightening when she was around me. I found her presence enjoyable, and I found her appearance comforting for some reason. I was working fast and accurately, my movements in synch with the beats of the music. The drawing, charcoaling, and blending movements, and even the alternation between the three were like a dance; and I was gaining momentum more and more before the song ended.

"Aw, man." I complained. "Song's over."

"How do you do that?" she asked me, as if she could read the synchronization between myself and the music.

"I always work with music on. All artists have inspiration, and mine was always music." I answered as I started to blend with my stick. "And I think that this is the last touch... there."

She got up and walked around and looped over to my side of the stand to see what the final result was. The picture itself was a low key charocaling of her standing with her elbows raised and her arms reaching to the back of her head, her white and gray hair very slightly covering her breasts, and her eyes closed with her mouth showing that she was biting her lip. Her head was tilted down and to her right, and her body was making that a 3/4 pose: where the head is looking more so towards theperson seeing the picture and the body in its own forward state. I had gotten her breasts right, and even her petite inwards bellybutton and flat stomach along with that tuft of white-gray shaded hair above her loins was correct. I only drew in everything above half-calf level. "How do you like it?" I asked her.

She smiled and her body seemed to tighten up more, and her eyes became misty with daydreams and delight. "You did great." she critiqued as she held my cheeks and kissed me **very **deeply. Her wings of black light and purple fire blazed from her back and simmered away as she stopped and kissed my cheek. "You're going to do another for me, you little bitch." she sleazed and teased as she twirled her finger in my hair. I could see my own reflection in her misty, hungry eyes.

I had Italian/Hispanic features with light skin, mainly so with the heart shaped upper lip and thick eyebrows. My irises were black-brown and my eyes were almond shaped adorned with long and many eyelashes. I was six feet and one and a half inches tall, and my hair was thick and wavy, and black like obsidian. I was still slim and agile, but I was also built up and bigger with the muscle mass. I was also hairier on the chest and stomach, as well as the arms and legs and other places; but only so much, mostly like any other American guy. (** Author's note: You finally can get a picture of how Nathan looks.) I smiled nervously and stupidly for her. "Okay." I answered as she kissed me again, once again igniting her wings.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Immigrant Song played from my phone, and Minato's contact lit up the phone; the time was 1:30 pm. I put in a bluetooth earpiece and pushed a button to answer the call after I rubbed my hands on a handkerchief and put the music on pause. "Minato, my man! What's the nish cadish, dude?" I greeted.

"I've got some news...it's big." he said hesitantly.

"Define it for me." I prompted.

"It's complicated, can I tell you in person?" he asked.

"Oh, totally, brother!" I exclaimed as we both hung up. "Akitsu!" I called out as I ran into the living room and found her awaiting me.

"Yes, Nathan?" she asked in her usual monotone.

"Get dressed fancy, girl, we're gonna get crazy! Minato's coming over with results from the exam." I prompted her. "Midasu! Help me prepare some stuff, like drinks!" I called out to her.

We got a bunch of bottles of imported fruity soda in a tin bucket filled with ice and I prepared some strawberries and chocolate dip. We also had to hide it, since it was meant to be a surprise. Two sekreis and myself made this easy and very speedy to prepare and produce.

_Ding-a-ling!_ The doorbell rang as Midasu and I agreed on some cover story for her. I dashed over to the door and I opened it to find Minato standing there, nervously and hesitantly. I kept it hidden, but I was excited to hear him say what I wanted to hear him say, and I knew perfectly well that it was true. "Hey." he 'forced' out.

"Hey, come in." I prompted as we walked inside and stood in the kitchen. "Well?" I asked, daring him to tell me.

Minato Sahashi, the guy I've known and been friends with for months, one of my best friends, let out a sigh of relief from holding in the truth, and he smiled merrily. "I passed it!" he exclaimed with a giggle of calm and very little hysteria. I laughed loudly in joy as we gripped hands and bro hugged, and Akitsu and Midasu pulled out the stuff from their hiding spots.

"I knew you would, brother!" I cried out with passionate happiness. "I told you that you would, and dammit man, you did! We prepared some stuff, but it's not as much as I planned to have prepared."

He smiled more and told me, "It's because of you. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have passed."

"Well, you were the one doing the work, I only helped you out in a multicultural way." I justified his praise. "This day is about you. And this is a big step in your life." I told him as I opened some drinks for everyone and raised my glass bottle. "To Minato!" I toasted as we all took a drink.

That day, we celebrated for a little bit. I only could use so much time because we had so little to celebrate the victory on his part with, so I gave him some money and told him to come pack in four or five hours. When he was gone, I looked to Akitsu and Madasu. "I'm going to put on my armor and head out." I announced to them. "I need you two to pick up food and drinks, as well as decorations for a party I'm hosting for Minato." I instructed sternly.

"Are you going to Maison Izumo again?" Akitsu asked.

I smiled and raised an eyebrow to her. "You **sure** you aren't telepathic?"

"Positive. You're just easy to read." she answered.

"Most American men are, trust me." I argued. "Excuse me, ladies."

I walked to my armory door and unlocked it with my key, and I walked into my armory. On tables there were guns of all kinds, and on racks there were cylindrical weapons: Arc-Swords. In sheathes hung on tiny individual hangers were my arc-knives, and there were all kinds of other arc-weapons hung up and laid around. An Arc-Weapon refers to the fact that they are basically plexiglass weapons that, when powered on, are like the standard gravitational potential energy concussion versions of the lightsaber. On mannequin stands were my suits of armor and my helmets, each one with a different purpose. "Hello, boys." I greeted to all of my stuff.

I walked out of the armory and locked the door behind me. I was wearing a dome helmet with cameras protected my bulletproof mini casing and unbreakable glass in order for me to see through a screen inside of my helmet. My armor itself was mostly like my other suit, save for the fact this one had different features. It could still fly with rockets in the calves and back, but it could also create hard light shields to deflect kinetic energy or bullets, as well as absorb kinetic or radiant energy to create energy attacks and forms. I called this suit Arcusius. In sheathes on my body were twin Arc-Sabres and knives. I walked out into the back yard and flew north, to Maison Izumo.

As I flew my way north, I thought about that ebony haired sekirei from my dream, the one who could manipulate light. 'Who was she supposed to be? Twenty bucks says that she's someone that I'm gonna get in some trouble for very soon.' I thought to myself as I noticed those twin sekirei huntresses giving chase to someone. A brown haired girl in white, red and pink fighting gear was leaping and sprinting away from them. Thankfully, Maison Izumo was only half a mile away from me, so I was able to just keep going. 'Those women aren't all that tough to beat anyway, I can't waist what little time I have on-' I thought to myself before my train of thought was interrupted by me being knocked out of the sky by a strong force of impact. My landing made a crater in the middle of a street that was, thankfully, not crowded by any people; but some were nearby, and they ran for dear life. "Mmm... I'm not too happy about that." I grunted through my microphone, with my hand on my helmet's 'forehead' area.

"You have been quite the busy man in the last few days." a stalkerish and gruff woman's voice inferred at me. "I've never seen that before, Nathan Felix."

I looked up to to see a gray haired mop headed woman with a black gi over white-gray bandages wrapped all over her body below neck level. Her hands and arms were covered in armor and weapons, claws that were individually about a foot or less long. Her face was riddled with disgusting and murderous intent, her smile caked with slimy joy. Her silver blue eyes targeting me and focusing of how she'd try to toy with me. "It's a pleasure to meet you." she greeted, disgustingly.

"Not for me, it isn't. You could have at least worn a mask or made this filled with fireworks." I grunted. "What gives, woman?"

She giggled in an ugly and happy way. "Haihane, number 104." she introduced. "The Blue sekirei. I bring a message from MBI."

I grunted and cracked my knuckles. "Kiss my ass, I have places to be. I'll make easy work of you, mop head!" I declared and threatened.

"Now that's a challenge if I've ever-" she began to boast as I threw a small bolt of energy from my hand at her.

"I don't have time for this, set up a date like most **normal** women!" I yelled as I leapt up and flew away.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Nathan, hello!" Miya greeted sweetly. "I'm sure you remember my-" she began to refer to her rule about my helmet.

"Miya, I had a run in with an ugly sekirei with the nails of a psychotic x-men fanatic. This time, I'm keeping it safe with my helmet on, please." I sternly interrupted as she began to glow with a demonic corona and a hannya mask materialized with her eyes eroding to lifeless and soulless husks of shade and red light.

"Please remove your helmet." she demanded rather calmly and sweetly, making it scarier.

I removed my helmet, out of respect for her ability to intimidate someone. "Very well, madam." I submitted as my response before walking to Matsu's room.

'Geez, I have this feeling that something is happening out there. Something bad.' I thought to myself, hearing it in whispers out loud as I tripped on my dragged foot and fell hard to the wooden floor. "Ouch." I grunted painfully as I got back up to my feet and saw a silver haired stylish looking man standing directly in front of me, wearing a white buttoned up shirt that had the top 3 buttons unbuttoned. One hand was in the pocket of his slim pants and the other was in an intellectual position upon his chin, which gave way to a discerning frown on his face and analyzing eyes.

"You must be the armored man I've been hearing about. Nathan Felix." he said, his voice sounding surprisingly close to a woman's for some undecipherable reason. "I'm surprised to see you for the first time." he admitted.

I had a confused look on my face as I blinked a few times. "You heard about my armor, but not my business?" I asked as I closed my eyes and my mouth squiggled. "That's harsh." I whimpered humorously.

"You have a business?" he asked.

"I'm an artist, I do commissions for people. I have yet to make advertisements or anything yet." I admitted as I held one eye closed and the other open with a smile. I scratched my head and said, "Perhaps I should soon. I have two sekireis already, they could be models for my advertisements."

He began to walk away and said, "I'm not a fan of men with weapons, but I'll trust you in this place if Miya does. Do anything stupid, and you'll be sorry."

"I... sure, guy." I whimpered as I walked over to Matsu's wall and knocked on it.

"Yes?" a muffled Matsu's voice answered to my knock.

"It's Nathan. I found another one in a dream, more like a nightmare." I called out to her.

She turned the wall over and pulled me into her room by my hand. "Well, come on then! Time's-a-wastin'!" she cried out, instigating action.

"Okay, okay... So, Matsu, could you-?" I began to ask.

"I'm not an idiot, Nathan." she snapped calmly.

"You're both an Ashikabi who's going to fight in a high stakes game, which **no one** else is gonna do! And you're going to advertise yourself for your business?" she started to growl and build up.

My eyes doubled in size. "Well, kinda yeah...!" I shuddered as I began to sweat.

"Do you have any idea how-" she began.

'Eeeheeek! Oh, crap!' I thought to myself. "—unbelievably selfish that is?! Why didn't you tell me that you needed help with that, I'd be happy to!" she barked.

My eyes widened more. "I'm sorry, what?" I asked. "You want to help out with that?"

"Duh! I could use a hobby. What do you need?" she agreed with me.

"Well, I could sort of use a model or two, maybe some extra hands with the supplies and stuff..." I pondered.

"You need... a model?" she asked with glints and sparkles in her eyes and flashes in her glasses. Her grin and giggles made her intentions apparent.

'You can't be serious.' I thought to myself, as a mental facepalm. "Matsu... you want to be a crier and a model for some signs for me?" I asked, indulging into her wants and desires.

She jumped up and giggled. "Yeah, let's go!" she exclaimed as she swiftly put on a disguise and a new outfit. "To your place."

'Nathan, this place is gonna kill you.' I scolded myself. I was going to worry about, of all things, my business and the ideas of Matsu. This would be very... intriguing.


	6. Of all things

"Please, tell me you're joking." I requested nervously as I took my over armor off and put it in the armory, while on a phone call through my bluetooth earpiece.

"What's the big deal? It's not like I'm asking you to take over the world, or anything. I just wanna help." Matsu said to me as I walked back into my art studio and hung up. She was there, sure enough, standing and doing a cute little waiting dance for me. "So, what do I do?" she asked me.

"I uh..." I pondered as I looked around and found that I had nothing to do this with. "I have a camera in my room somewhere, in a silver box with shiny handels. I have all of my other multimedia stuff around here too, check in the black trunk over there." I ordered.

We began to look around, and then we found all of my multimedia stuff, my cameras and my green screen and my stands for my camera, et cetera. Over the span of a half an hour, we got the other two women in my house together after their shopping for Minato's party, and we set up some good shop in the studio. "Okay, that makes all of them. I'm going to need your help to advertise my business, and help me make some money for us." I announced to them. "We'll have to do this modeling quickly, so we can set up stuff for Minato's party tonight."

"Okay." Akitsu submitted.

"Don't make me look like too much of a hooker, or I'll be pissed." Midasu sleazed with a smile/sneer on her face.

"Alrighty." Matsu agreed as she got in her underwear, right then and there.

My nose started to bleed and I averted my eyes to Akitsu, in order to help cool me down. "Um...?" I started to whimper and complain to her.

She did little more than close her eyes and get in some underwear too, and Midasu followed suit. 'Is this some kind of titty committee or something? I think I'm going to die right now!' I whimpered in my mind. 'Now I can guess who Minato feels around women.' I finished as I picked up a camera, and made my speakers play the Krewella song: Come and get it (Razihel remix). That alone made the camera shots and the work so much more lively. Ever posture that they took, ever pose that they made as I took shots from my camera and videos in front of the green screen. The music was like fuel, and I was on one hell of a drive; fast and furious, I took all that I needed and all movement was in synch with the fast paced music, the beats in my steps and the baseline as my excitement. As minutes passed, I got all of my work done, and I enjoyed it. I smiled to them, sweating and holding my camera. "Well, that's really all I need. I can edit all of this business overnight." I announced with medium heavy breaths between every few words.

"You, just, like, danced all over the place. That was just..." Matsu sputtered in awe.

I chuckled and closed my eyes. "I'm a big music fan." I justified for my rather unexplainable performance.

"I'd say." she giggled as they all began to put their normal sekirei clothes back on. "You made this all go by within, like, an hour."

"Well, I try." I kept scoffing out before I took out my phone and checked the time. "Ugh, it's almost 4, Minato will be here any second. I'm gonna get armored and run a small errand." I let them know as I walked out of the studio and began to walk in rhythym to the song.

'Think about the guy. You gotta at least make sure that he's alright. Hopefully that vile woman, "Haihane" won't attempt anything particularly stupid while I'm out. I don't have enough of the firepower to-' I began to think to myself while walking, until I recieved a phone call. The phone rang as Immigrant Song. It was Minato. I answered my phone. "Minato, hey. What's up?" I greeted.

"Nathan, I'm going to be a little late to the party." he admitted in a rather humorous and pathetic way.

"What for? Is it anything that I could help with?" I asked him concernedly. "Knowing you, it usually is."

"Well, you'll kinda think I'm crazy." he complained. "But can I ask for you to help me?"

'If only he knew the kind of shit I've been in lately.' I thought to myself obnoxiously. "Dude, just tell me, man." I demanded calmly.

I heard him take deep breaths as I put the phone on bluetooth and walked into my armory. "Okay, Nathan. This girl named Musubi landed on me from falling out of the sky and two black haired women in S&M gear appeared out of nowhere and chased us all over the place. I just took her to my apartment and I'm feeding her. Boy, she can eat, for a nice and rather cute girl in a gi and fightning gear... are you still there?" he whined and explained before asking if I was still there.

I was alarmed beyond any and all belief. Minato was going to be dragged into this stupid plan along with me, and all because that brown haired Sekirei that I saw that morning, and those idiots in sexy gear. I was furious, but I tried to keep calm. "Minato, listen to me very, **very** closely. Take that girl out to lunch, she'll probably be very hungry. I have you on my Life360 app, so I'll be able to find you. If you get into a life or death situation with those women who assaulted you two, indulge in any and all desires and kiss her. Understand?" I thoroughly instructed.

"Oh, uh, no problem. I'll see you soon." he affirmed as we both hung up.

"Sooner than you think." I said out loud as I put my Arcusius armor back on and took my weapons with me.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Master, is it right for us to watch this?" Midasu asked me through a network of communications through my helmet and an earpiece she wore.

"I'm positive, Midasu." I answered, standing over Minato and that woman from a rooftop. "We must be vigilant, yet not interfere. Is that clear?" I directed.

"Yes, master." Midasu agreed with me. "I won't let you down."

I smiled. "That's hot, coming from you, Midasu." I complimented as I noticed that I was not alone on this rooftop. I took out my Arc-Sabres and said, "You're quite the sneak, miss."

She was a young woman with pink hair and a black gi with the sekirei symbol on the back, and her eyes matched her hair. As it blew in the wind, I noticed how medium long it was, and how it flowed so well. She had light and sandy pink skin and fighter's gloves as well. Her hair was actually tied to a tail that was off to the side of her head, with white flowers in her hair. Her face was stern and rather calm for now, but I could tell that she'd be a beast and quite destructive once angered. She looked down at Minato and the woman, accompanying me in the act. " Relax, I'm not going to hurt anybody, Cable." she both assured and dubbed me.

"Did you just call me, Cable?" I asked her in confusion. "Cable is-"

"I know that you're a big fan of Marvel Comics, and that you prefer not to be too known by your name for now. You're skilled for a human, and your name is Nathan. 'Cable' fits both criteria." she clarified. "And from what I've studied of your movements, you're looking for sekireis to join up with you." she inferred.

I blinked in confusion. "It's a cause, yeah... I'm sorry, who are you?" I asked.

She looked at me and growled in irritation. "Benitsubasa...!" she grumbled as she blushed like a strawberry.

"Well, listen, I'm all for the idea of you being my sekirei, but can I at least ask you a favor?" I asked her. "Please don't try to kill me ever."

She looked at me and frowned. "You'll have to help me out before I have you as an Ashikabi." she ordered. " I need some way to vent my anger... I've been dealing with a lot of crap that I don't want to talk about and I wanna just forget about it." she challenged me.

"Master, we've got trouble." Midasu informed me. "A group of unknown sekirei are coming in for Minato and the girl, as well as the twin hunters."

I grunted. "Midasu, you keep your focus on the other Sekirei from-"

"Mikogami Hayato." Benitsubasa said. "The most powerful ashikabi of the west. He usually goes after any and all sekirei that he can. Cable, help me give them punishment, and we'll make way for something."

" 'Cable'?" Midasu asked.

"Don't ask, Midasu. Benitsubasa, I'm helping you out." I announced to both of them. "Let's get some good jam up in this bitch!" I cried out as I made my helmet play Can't Hold Us, by Macklemore.

That music made me somewhat pumped up, and I flew over to meet my enemy sekireis in battle. My rockets gave me a great boost in agility, and my Arc weapons made everything so much more easy. As I jumped into the battle, the music fueled my combat prowess; my first strikes being towards one sekirei's neck and shoulder joint, and the other strikes to some other one's ribs. They grunted whenever they'd try to either help one another, and it just made it all the more easy to just effortlessly take them down. Every sekirei that I struck with even the slightest tap or flurry attack suffered a small blast to the body, and I could hear the bones break. Benitsubasa fought very angrily and in the most ventful ways possible; she was like a superpowered demon or an enabled feral beast in human form. I took down all of my targets in a very brutal and yet merciful way. They were bad numbers anyway, judging from how they fought so poorly. Benitsubasa and I stood over the remains of the fallen sekirei in this little scrape of events, and I said, "Well, I hope that helped you, Benitsubasa." as I took off my helmet. "I really do."

She looked into my eyes and I looked into hers. My heart began to pound and I began to heat up as she and I jumped onto a rooftop and I held her hands in mine. We both blushed and started to fluster out as we leaned in for the kiss. I kissed her lips, pressing mine to hers at first, and then she completely got all into it. Our tongues were dancing as wings of red and pink light ignited upon her back and below us, another emergence occured.

Minato would be involved in the sekirei plan.


	7. Upbringing

I was on a black VAIO laptop, messing around on Inkscape so that I could edit all of the material I had gotten earlier in the day. I was listening to Love, a Prince song that I had been heavily attached to many years ago; and I kept making edits to the pictures. Thankfully, the green screen effect was good for it, and that made my process a lot easier. The women in those postures mixed in with some effects and given extra emphasis was all well said and done, but there was only one real problem. As I looked at my pictures and my editing software, I realized something. "I don't have a name for my business." I pondered to myself out loud, my living room giving no response and Akitsu looking to me.

"Why do you need a name for your business?" Akitsu asked as she walked over and stood over me. "So people could find us out there?"

I looked to her and smiled with relief. Akitsu's presence was always helpful and soothing to me now, and it's gotten to the point where I wanted her to go out with me on a daily basis. I calmed my mind of this question and answered, "If people can't find our business, how can we make money? I've gotta find a good name, something that will stick out." as I closed my laptop and stood up with her, smiling. "Is it wrong that I've gone crazy?"

"How have you gone crazy? You usually strike me as calmer, more collected than-" she began to answer, due to the fact that she took my question literally.

I put my hand on her cheek, her cold and expressionless face was warming up at my touch. "I'm crazy for you guys. I'm starting to wonder if I could start to have a family with this." I clarified as I saw her eyes light up a bit.

Akitsu was always able to hide her emotions, her personality was so frozen in place that it was just ice. I could hardly tell if she was happy, angry, sad, or otherwise. Except for her eyes. Her eyes were sharp and keen, and in suit wih the rest of her face, but her eyes would always show me some emotion. They sparkled when happy, glinted when angry, and they began to slowly tear up when under any form of sadness or extreme stress. I looked into her beautiful eyes, watching flustered joy dance along her irises in glints and mists, like auroras. "Nathan, I think I might be a little crazy too." she admitted as we kissed lightly, and her wings shone momentarily.

I smiled and chuckled a bit. "You're excellent at hiding it, though. You're always looking so cool minded and calm, almost icy." I examined as she looked away slightly, as if she thought I didn't like it.

"I'm sorry, Nathan. I've been so alone and so hurt for a long time, I-" she began to apologize.

"Akitsu, I really like that about you. It's like a balm to my stress and a cooling agent for me." I justified and interrupted as I held her arm and caressed it. "I love you, Akitsu."

She blushed and smiled a teeny tiny bit. "I love you too." she replied as I heard it.

_Ding-a-ling!_ "Minato." I said to us, thinking out loud. "Are the decorations ready?"

"Yes." she affirmed as I examined myself, and thankfully I was in nothing more than jean pants and a black t-shirt.

"Okay, I'll let him in." I let her know as I smiled and winked. "Please wear that Greek-roman dress, for me."

I opened the door and found Minato with that girl in front of my door. I smiled and hugged Minato quickly before I let them in. "How did your lunch date go?" I asked him.

"It was... well, exciting." Minato chuckled as I laughed with him for a second.

"Minato? Is this your friend? Wasn't he supposed to be there at the restaraunt with us?" she asked with a child's simplicity.

I smiled to her and held her hand in mine, kissing it friendly before letting it go. "I'm that friend. Name's Nathan." I greeted.

She smiled and closed her eyes. "I'm Musubi. Sekirei number- oops." she stopped as she closed her mouth with her hand and Minato looked tenser.

I smiled and chuckled with my eyes closed gleefully. "It's fine to tell, Musubi. I already know that you're a sekirei." I balmed the stress and looked to Minato. "From one ashikabi to another, it's good to keep this a secret, but you can be more open in my house." I told him.

"Wait, you're...?" he asked as he began to spazz out and look at Akitsu, Benitsubasa and Midasu. "You're an ashikabi?!"

I held up a drink that Benitsubasa handed to me, smiling and excited. "And now **you** are! To Minato, the rising star and new blood ashikabi!" I toasted as we all took a drink, except for the confused and awestruck Minato and Musubi.

That night, we had lots of music, games, competitions, dining and desserts. Nobody got drunk, but everybody had a good time from the looks of it. Throughout the party, I had noticed stuff that I knew I had to address, and Minato was one of them. I walked out of the house and took a breath of fresh air, holding a glass of ice water in my hand; and I sat down on a chair, looking out to the city in front of me like I did when I first saw Akitsu. I smiled and took a deep breath in the fresh yard air, and then breathed out a frosty white mist. I saw this and thought to myself, 'She's going to make it snow again? Oh, Akitsu. I love-' I heard the door open and close as Minato sat down in the chair adjecent to mine. He looked to me and asked, "Nathan?"

"Yes, my friend?" I asked him in response.

"How long have you been...?" he began to ask as he fell silent.

"Akitsu was my sekirei since the day after I moved here." I answered him. "I was told that it's a secret plan, so I didn't tell you she was a sekirei yet."

He looked down to his feet and smiled. "Well, that's good. You were following rules, that's all. At least you weren't being deceitful about this whole thing." he said to me. "Thanks for that."

I looked to him in concern, my frown riddled with worry. "I'm your best friend, Minato. Remember?" I asked him. "And... you know Musubi will violate your lease for the apartment you're in..." I reminded him.

"Oh, right... I forgot..." he sombered. "Well, hopefully I'll be as lucky as you are."

I pointed north, and he looked where I was pointing. "Maison Izumo. You can live there until you get a house for yourself. Tell the landlady that Nathan Felix put in a good word for you." I instructed him.

He looked to me, and I looked to him. "I can't live here?" he asked me.

"Minato, I would love for you to live here. But let's take this into consideration. Two ashikabis in the same home, a fortress with the sekirei to back it up. We'd be a huge target." I told him. "Separation of living space will be very helpful."

He blinked in surprise and then chuckled while closing his eyes, smiling at me. "You're always the one who thinks things through, Nathan." he complimented. "In this 'sekirei plan', you can count on me being your ally."

I smiled and we brother hugged. "Try to get more sekireis down the road, it will help you a lot."

XXXXXXXXXX

The time was 10:05 p.m, and I was with Benitsubasa in the kitchen, sitting on stools by the counter and I was having a bowl of ice cream. I calmly and steady mindedly took spoonfuls into my mouth, trying to be a bit more like Akitsu; in the sense that I needed to calm down and sober up. Benitsubasa looked to me and smiled with her eyes closed and a small scoff. "I like your Akitsu impersonation." she giggled slightly. "But it doesn't really suit you."

I lost my focus and laughed a bit, looking to her. "I know, but I kinda needed to sober up from the party. I don't want a hangover tomorrow, I have a lot of stuff to do." I let her know with a warm smile. "And I want you to come with me."

She looked intruiged, and asked me, "Why me?"

"Why not? Benitsubasa, I really like you and I want you to have the experience of fighting with me more." I answered.

She blushed a bit and looked away. "Nobody ever wanted me to team up with them before. People don't usually like the fist types, especially one with the number 105." she sombered. "And even in terms of my body, nobody really admired it."

"Why? You're sexy as hell and you proved your prowess at fighting today." I asked and told her. "You're a beautiful woman, Benitsubasa. Don't doubt that, or I'll punch you in the face."

She giggled deviously. "Really? You'll punch **me**? You aren't wearing your armor right now, I'll deck you." she joked as she nudged me.

I grinned and nudged her back. "I'll wreck you, mate." I joked, talking in a gamer's texting language.

We kept playing and laughing for a little while, and Benitsubasa was roughhousing with me around the living room, until we fell over and I accidentally smushed one of her breasts in my hand. My eyes doubled in size and I was turning red like a tomato, and I looked into her pink eyes. I was sweating heavily and I felt my own heart pound loudly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." I sputtered as I took a big gulp, fearful of my death.

She smiled angrily and deviously, almost evil at that. "Shower with me, and I'll easily forgive you." she demanded.

I smiled and kissed her. "Okay, let's go, my Red Sekirei."

We ran up into the shower room and got naked, turning on only one showerhead for water, but it was the really big one, for two or three people. Hot water was running down our bodies as she walked and pressed her body to mine and her hand enticed and encircled my penis. Her breasts were pressed to my chest, and though they weren't too big, they were soft and creamy just the same. I groaned slightly, from sensitity to her soft and warm hands. She smiled and licked her lips, and then she said, "I'm going to enjoy being your sekirei." and she began to jerk me and squeeze it.

I chuckled lightly and smiled nervously. "Don't kill me."

She laughed sexy and we began to kiss. Kissing became deeper kissing. Her wings of light shone, then flared as we kept going until they died out. Our tongues were wrestling and dancing in the glistening combination of hot water, steam and light from LED bulbs all along the ceiling. She tasted so good, like a good aftertaste from the drinks we had, and her hand jerking my dick felt so exquisite, like she was massaging it and juicing it. I held her cheek in one hand as I kept kissing her deeper and deeper, and then with her other hand, she put mine on her vagina. She paused the kissing and whispered, "You can please me too." as I put two fingers inside of her.

It escalated into us fingering and pleasing one another until my muscles tightened heavily and I had an orgasm on her hand, and she on mine. She smiled as we licked our hands and she kissed me, her wings shining again. She giggled deviantly and said, "I love you, my little bitch." as she smacked my ass and I smacked hers. She looked back to me was we walked out of the shower room and blew me a kiss, and I caught it; she waved to me goodnight and I did the same before walking into my bedroom. 'Man, I think I'm going to enjoy being an Ashikabi. Yes siree bob, I'm gonna love it.' I thought to myself gleefully as I had a small daydream.

I saw Benitsubasa in a sexy kitty lingerie with Matsu in a pink sexy kitty lingerie in a rather provocative pose on my bed. The room was all misty and added with pink-red lightning for good effect, and they were begging for me to punish them for being bad kittens. I smiled and laughed a bit as I snapped back into reality and looked in my room to find Akitsu sitting on the bed, waiting for me to arrive. She was naked, and upon seeing me she smiled a tiny bit, her eyes misty and hungry looking. "Would you like to sleep now?" she asked me.

"Yeah, I'll admit, I'm pretty tired. I got a lot of stuff to tend to tomorrow." I admitted as I kissed her forehead. "I'm glad you're my wife, Akitsu."

She pressed me to her chest and laid us on the bed, petting my dark hair and running her fingers through it. "I'm glad too. You make me so happy, its hard to stay calm like I always do." she admitted in response. "Maybe I should try to-"

I began to suckle her breasts, licking and sucking on them. She moaned a little bit, stopping her from saying anything about changing herself. I suckled her and rubbed her more and more, then I paused and looked into her eyes. "Don't ever think I want you to change yourself for me. I love you, both in body and mind." I commanded her, in some way offended by her thoughts of changing herself for me.

"Yes, Nathan. Forgive me." she begged.

I smiled and licked her nipples. "I already have. You're so delicious, Akitsu." I complimented as I kissed her deeply, and I felt her body heat up, her frigid corona of self control melting away and she became something so incredibly beautiful. She became so hungry for me and emotional that her face couldn't hide it.

"Nathan, I want you inside me!" she cried out as she began to kiss me deeper, more hungrily.

I smiled and sucked on her neck as I put my dick inside of her. "With pleasure, Akitsu."

XXXXXXXXXXX

I was on a brimstone island in the middle of a giant planet spanning dome of lava and fire. Geysers of sulfiric steam pumped out all over the island, like pores on skin. I was barely able to breathe, let alone see, due to my constant exposure to the murderous miasma that was the intense smoke of sulfur and poisonous gas. "It is time for you to stop this incessant running, Nathan." a voice that sounded like the antichrist gurgling the universe in his throat, growling and gnarling in its voice. "The time is almost upon you."

"Oh, no, not you!" I simpered in fear, looking around to try and find him.

"These superhumans will not be of any anodyne to the dimensional cavity at the center of the universe, the cancer that shall devour the newborn god and men." it called out to me. "You can not run."

"Like hell I can't!" I ran towards the off-bringing of the island, the edge to where I could jump off. But then I realized, it ws only a nightmare, and that it would just end soon. "I can run from you, like I always have!"

"But you can not hide or find sanctuary, and I will always catch you." it chided as my flesh became charred and I was burning in hellfire.

"No!" I screamed as I woke up and immediately sat up in my bed, my loins half covered by the sheets.

Akitsu sat up, looking at me concernedly. We were both naked and I was sweating out of extreme stress, but then I saw her. 'My love.' I thought to myself. 'I have to protect you, I promise!' "Nathan, are you okay?" she asked me.

I laid down with her and kissed her. "I am now." I told her as I began to suckle her more, nursing off of her beautiful breasts and her comforting presence and coolness.

"Mmm, good. Am I that good for you, master?" she asked me as she rubbed my head.

I looked up to her and smiled. "Let me remind you of how good you are for me!" I roared joyfully at her as I began to eat her out and make love to her again.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

"Minato, what are you doing?" I asked Minato, while he and I were sitting down at the dining table and I was eating some cereal while he was studying.

"Studying, these courses of cram school are really painfully hard on me." he answered.

"Then stop taking them. Take time to enjoy life and make the road ahead easier for yourself." I told him to what to do.

"Well, maybe you could tutor me or something?" he suggested. "That could work. I mean, nothing better to do, right?"

"I'm not a good tutor for you, I went to an Art college; you're taking different stuff than I did. Plus, America's colleges are different than this place." I answered.

"Well, I'm just saying, maybe we could just try? You're smart, I know that." he argued.

I looked at him skeptically, and I ate my cereal more, silently thinking to myself. "You know, you're not going to get too far by thinking you can't help people." he told me.

"And what does that mean? That I should?" I asked him in sharp argument. "I'd be more of a hinderance than a help to you."

"But that's not true. If you weren't there when those strongarms tried to rob me, I'd have been beaten to a pulp and screwed for months, maybe even years." he referred to that. "You aren't some outcast to me, Nathan."

"I'm your roommate." I snapped.

"You're my **friend**." he bolted at me.

I was quiet for a little bit, taking a few breaths. Then I reached a decision. "I'll help you out, kid. Just don't immediately expect five-star tutoring from me, I'm not a bookworm." I told him.

He smiled at me warmly, and I scratched my head. "Do we have any more soda?" I asked him.

"I think we ran out a while back." he answered. "Do you want to get more?"

"Yeah, I'll pay for it and stuff. Be back in a few minutes." I told him as I got up and walked out of the house.

As I was walking down the street and over a couple blocks to the store, I noticed a voluptuous woman in a very cleavage primary revealing red-violet outfit and heeled shoes; she was walking down to the same place I was, but she seemed to take interest in me. I asked myself a question that I knew would be answered later. "Who is she?"


	8. Nightmare

I was in my art studio, painting on a two foot by three foot canvas, listening to Velvet Rope, by Janet Jackson. I was lost in thought as I did nothing but paint and paint, not stopping the movements and hardly taking the time to breathe properly. I was lost in my own work, not even thinking to eat or drink anything, for my body did fine without either for the time being. 'It's okay, Nathan. Think about it, all that was was just a nightmare; a dream, a surreal fear that just happened to burst out at me for the moment. Nothing that I can't handle.' I thought to myself as the music came to a stop, singaling that the song was over. 'Focus on the happier things, and just keep calm. You aren't alone.'

I looked at my finished painting and viewed upon its appearance. 'That's right, Nathan.' I thought to myself as I smiled. 'Just focus on the better things.' The painting was of Benitsubasa sitting in front of a fire, wearing nothing but a white fuzzy fur coat; her back was arched a bit as she was laying down and bending forth to rub her foreleg and her ankle with one hand and the other was on the floor, keeping her balanced. She was looking at the crimson and sunlit flame and her eyes glistened from the dancing light of the pyre. She was in such a peaceful state of her face, looking dreamily at the flame. Light shone more so on one side than the other, the light being where the firelight warmed her body and the shadow being where all shadows would mostly be cast: on the other side of the obsturcting object. The carpet was a soft brown fur material, and it also had its fair share of light and shading contrast where she was sitting. "I never knew that you were an artist, Nate." Benitsubasa commented as I looked over my shoulder and found her walking to my side and smiling at me, as if I had amused her. "Outside of your tongue, that is."

I smiled and scratched my head. "Aw shucks, I thought you were supposed to not really like me."

She giggled and kissed my cheek. "Why? You're my Ashikabi, of course I really like you. Why, I like you so much, I could just..." she cut off as she kissed my neck.

I held her to me, embracing her. "I've got work to do, Benitsubasa, and you gotta come along with me. I'm having Akitsu come with me too, and I'm leaving Midasu to watch the house." I let her know. "I'm going to the armory to get geared up."

I walked into the armory and got in front of my armor suits, and held my chin in my finger and thumb, thinking of one to put on. I smiled as I saw my stealth assassin armor. A black plated suit of hi-tech armor with twice as many compartments and more room for weaponry, but at a cost; the armor itself could not fly, but it **could** teleport to surprisingly long distances, plus it had ten kinds of ocular variant visions and scopes. I smiled and put the dark plated beast on, and took up a few of my better weapons. I walked out of the armory and locked the door behind me, and then I walked my way to the front yard. Akitsu and Benitsubasa were waiting for me, and I nodded to them. My helmet was once again the X-visor type with the microphone and modulator, except this visor could change vision types. I smiled to Akitsu and asked her, "Care to make things frosty?"

She nodded as they leapt their way to Maison Izumo, and I teleported my way across distances, blinking like an afterimage or a mirage hologram. In my helmet, I kept vocal conversation with myself, thanking the good lord that no one could hear me. We kept going on and on, further up north until I was struck by something. Lightning, and rather peculiarly purple lightning at that, collided with me as I was about to land on the ground in front of the inn. I crashed onto the road and my armor began to smoke as I was disoriented. "Ugh...ouch." I groaned as I got to my feet. "Not cool."

"That's what you get for causing us so much trouble, twice in a row!" a woman's voice shouted at me as I saw the two sekirei hunter women land on their feet a few yards away from me.

I frowned angrily and irritably. "You keep hunting sekireis, who haven't even been winged yet, and here you are bolting up my shit for no god damn reason!" I shouted in a modulated deeper voice. "You are going to get f**ked up!"

I took out a high technical semi-auto two foot long and mid-weight plasteel cased weapon that had glowing green energy veins along the primary barrel. I pulled the trigger, aiming at the woman in purple gear. A bolt of fiery cyan plasma launched at her, and upon high speed impact, she rocketed back a few meters in momentum's response. She screamed out in surprise and confusion, and the other one was distracted. I turned invisible with the minimetic cybernetics in the suit, and I teleported my way to Akitsu and Benitsubasa. "Keep them at bay, and if they attack you too much, do whatever sekireis do in order to terminate them. Give me five minutes." I ordered.

"Yes, master." they both affirmed as I regained visibility and took off my helmet as I put my gun away and walked into the inn.

Miya smiled sweetly to me, as she usually did when I went over to the inn. "Your friend just arrived with Musubi minutes ago." she told me.

I smiled. "Thank you." I thanked as I begame minimetic again and blinked my way sneakily up to Matsu's room. I knocked on her wall. "Matsu? It's Nathan."

I walked in and found her typing on her keyboards in front of all of her surveilance screens, her glasses reflecting the glare of the screens' bue and shite blinking strobe-ish she noticed me come in and stood up to my level, smiling and adjusting her glasses with a wink. "Good morning, Nathan." she greeted.

I smiled and kissed her hand. "Hel-lo Matsu." I jingled as she giggled deviously.

"Stop that, you're making me blush." she demanded me in such a cute way, that I just couldn't disobey.

I let her and go and I stretched my arms out and groaned. "So, what're you doing?" she asked me. "I hear the fighting outside, is something wrong?"

"Twin sekirei hunters just knocked me down with a bolt of lightning, so I unloaded my flash of anger at them. Akitsu and Benitsubasa are dealing with them." I answered. "They had a hand in Musubi and Minato's... exciting meet and greet, as well as my meeting with Midasu."

She open mouth gaped at me, her eyes like half-dollar coins. "You winged the Red Sekirei?!" she souted at me in fear. "Does she know I'm here?" she interrogated in a brash way.

"I never told anyone about you. Only Akitsu and I know you're here, believe me." I answered and assured her. "I'm not going to just destroy your trust like that, Matsu. I'm not that kind of..." I started to say as I heard something outside, something faint and yet something that was deafening. "I'll be back."

I put my helmet on and became invisible as I kept teleporting my way down and around the inn until I appeared my way into the front, where I saw Akitsu and Benitsubasa standing in victory over them. They looked to me, and I shook my head. "No termination, not yet. I don't want to anger any ashikabi just yet." I ordered them as they leapt over to my side.

"That is rather nice of you." a familiar man's voice said to me, as I saw him walk over to them.

He was really lecherous looking and always looked like he was either poor or tired; most of the time it was both. He had dark hair, slightly lighter eyes, and he always wore a simple ensemble of a light jacket, a shirt and pants. His walk was a rather simple and "here and now" kind of calm walk, and his voice was the same way, mixed in with some rather unique depth in his voice compared to others I've met. I knew of him, and I was still surprised. "Seo Kaoru?" I asked out loud, no modulation in my voice.

He smiled and scratched at an itch on his cheek, then he said, "I never knew you had this kind of stuff in your pockets, Nate Felix." he surmised to me. "So you're the famous Armored Ashikabi."

Seo Kaoru was one of my friends as well, Minato and I met him when I was out and about, going to meet Minato after his shift at his job as a construction worker was due for the day. Seo had decided to take us around, and he actually was the one who showed me where a lot of things were in this peice od Shinto Teito, Tokyo. I looked to him and smiled. "Now it makes much more sense. Hibiki and Hikari are your sekireis. I didn't even meet them outside of our... arguments." I told him.

He smiled at me and helped them up. "You mean shooting Hibiki with that fancy weapon of yours? I have to admit, it was pretty funny." he said as the other one, Hikari, jolted him with a sharp bolt of lightning. He howled in agony as he started to smoke. "Well, it still was."

I looked to them and took my helmet off and ruffled my hair, trying to clear up its uncomfortability from being pressed down in my helmet. "I'm sorry, Hibiki, Hikari. If I knew it was you two, I would been less of a hitter. I'd hit harder, but less." I joked with a small grin.

Hikari crossed her arms and scoffed with her eyes closed, angrily. "Whatever."

Hibiki said nothing, only sneered in irritation. I put my helmet on and took out my energy rifle, and said to Seo, "Do you have any others?" in a modulated voice.

"No. But something tells me that you will." he inferred to me.

"Ehh, yeah." I replied.

"Do you need help finding them? Hikari and Hibiki are excellent at finding them. I could come with you-" he started.

"Not now. Later." I interrupted as I saw Minato and Musubi run out. "For now, we just relax."

Minato looked at me, and grimaced in confusion and ignorance. "Who are you?" he asked.

'Oh yeah, he hasn't ever seen me in my armor.' I thought to myself. 'For a little while, we'll have to just keep it that way.' I pointed the rifle at Musubi and shot her, knocking her down with a kinetic smoky colored stun blast. "Musubi!" he cried out as I warp-jumped my way across rooftops to escape.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

I was with that black haired girl again, but this time, we weren't defending from anything. We were standing in the middle of an empty city, with no people walking the streets and no activity anywhere. It was just myself and her. We simply stoof there, holding each other's hands and standing really close to her. "Hey." I greeted bashfully.

She smiled. "Hey, mister Ashikabi." she greeted with a small blush.

"Where are you? How can I find you?" I asked progressively. "I keep having dreams like this, I know we're-"

"I'm being hunted by someone. Until you can draw out my hunters, I need you to just wait." she told me, reluctantly.

"Make yourself public and in the open somewhere. My sekirei and I will drive them away." I suggested to her.

I woke up, without any answer from that rather unsatisfying dream. No point came from it and no good information came to pass with my awakening. But I found Akitsu, fast asleep in our bed, dreaming about lord knows what, while I was doing my unpleasant dreaming. I smiled and whispered in her ear, "Akitsu."

She began to blush everywhere, her body heating up and her vagina starting to become wet and warm with excitement. She moaned excitedly and pleasurably, trying to resist as she began to sleeptalk. "Yes, master?" she sleepspoke to me.

I smiled and became aroused."You're the most beautiful woman around, Akitsu." I told her as I licked her vagina with my whole tongue.

"Master, stop, you're making me-" she started to cry out as she burst into smoke and everything was charred and blended into darkness, and the fear set in.

My eyes widened and the breath stopped in my throat, my muscles paralyzed with the intense strain of terror. "No." I gasped. "No, no, no!"

Tiny focal points of crimson light blinked into existence. "Yes, Nathan. Accept me." his voice growled and gurgled in the voice of broken dimensions.

"No, I have too much now!" I cried out as the light broke and red mist formed around my skin.

"You will give in, eventually." it grumbled smugly as I appeared in the middle of my back yard, naked, and holding something quite unsettling.

I held a bandaged hilted obsidian longsword with a small brimstone skill as the pommel, with a living eye that had a red iris on its forehead. The blade itself was pretty thin and sharp enough to cut through anything and it pulsed with a demonic white flame. The eye looked at me. "You will give in. You will be whole again." it gurgled.

I looked at the blade and then my heart turned to stone. 'Never. Not in a million years.'

"Nathan?" Akitsu asked me, standing in front of me. "What is... that?" she asked in confusion.

I looked up to her face, my eyes tearing up. My mouth began to open and I cried out in absolute fear for myself. I slammed my fist against the ground, over and over again. "Akitsu... save me. I beg you." I pleaded her as she got on her knees and held me in her arms.

"You are my Ashikabi... I will always be there to save you." she promised me. "Just as you saved me from my living nightmare, barely a few days ago."

I held her in my arms and dropped the sword. "I love you very much, Akitsu."

"And I love you." she responed as we kissed.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback

"There is no way!" I shouted angrily at the man in pixelated comouflage army wear and a black beret. "There's no fucking chance! Let me in!"

He made little to no expressional output as he simply replied, "I'm sorry, son. But I can't let you in. He's gone."

"I said **no**!" I shouted. "Not in a billion years! He's stronger than that... He can't just...!" I whimpered angrily and in a state of emotional crippling.

The man did little more than have me outside of the hospital building within ten minutes. The rain was pouring heavily on Strawberry, Arizona; and the clouds were heavier and darker than all things I've seen before. I fell to my knees, crying in pain and sorrow. "Hey, Nathan!" Minato's voice called to me as I woke up, grumbling and moaning in irritation.

"Yes?"

"You gotta wake up, we'll be late to my exam." he reminded me. "You promised you'd take me."

I smiled and chuckled in an exhausted way. "Oh yeah. Come on, let's get us over there."

He didn't make the exam that day, but he sure as hell got a kick out of it. We always kept pushing him up, more and more into his studies and his grades. That was inarguably one thing and one thing only.

The singular most pleasant chunk of my adult life, until now.


	9. Flair

I was sitting on the couch, drawing on my drawing paper pad with a standard issue drawing pencil, an eraser, and a blending stick for shading blending. On the surround sound, the song: Love, by Prince was playing. I was always a huge fan of prince, and Love was always one of my favorite songs on his album 3121; and in my drawing, I was jamming out to the music. And as usual with my art, when music was involved, it became the living movements of dancing on paper or canvas, or other forms. I was in the zone, moving fast and smooth along the paper with the pencil, and the blending became something magical. In the end, my drawing was finished in less than ten minutes, because I had Love play twice. The drawing time wasn't my work though, not at all. It was actually just the simple fact of what I was drawing in general. I looked at it, and I started to get nervous for how she'd react when she saw it. "I'm probably going to die." I said to myself. "No question about it."

"No, more like I'd do that for you, no question about it." Midasu responded to me as I saw her sitting on the couch by my side, looking at the drawing pad and smiling in that dark way that she usually does.

The picture itself was actually juts a high key drawing of Midasu on her knees with her eyes partially closed, salaciously open-mouth devouring my dick with her tongue and rubbing her own breasts as I pet her hair. Above her tongue, I drew a tiny [~] vertical line and a heart. She smiled at me and kissed my cheek, long and deep. "All you need to do is ask." she whispered to me playfully as she kissed it again and got up to her feet. "Are Minato and Musubi coming over here today?" she asked me.

It had been only a few days ago that Minato had become and Ashikabi, and he was probably still going to have to do all kinds of unneeded work about the colleges that his entrance exam success has earned him. Though that worried me, I had faith that he'd pull through, because he was resilient like his sekirei, Musubi. I knew this firsthand, because sekireis can take blasts of my energy weapons without too much injury or fatigue; and I knew **that** because I quite literally busted a cap on her with my scrambler rifle barely a few days ago. I smiled to Midasu and told her, "I think he will. I have his number saved as a contact in the house phone; do me a solid and call him and ask him if him and Musubi are still coming over."

She walked over to the house phone and I got up from the couch; after putting my stuff down on the glass coffee table, I walked my way to the kitchen and poured myself some orange juice. 'I hope that he doesn't assume that I'm related to the armor, or to Musubi getting knocked down so quickly.' I thought to myself as I drank the juice. 'Benitsubasa called me "Cable" when we met. I'll have to just use that alias, even though it's an X-Men thing.' I continued to think to myself as I heard Midasu say, "He'll be here shortly."

I smiled and thanked her for the info as I walked to the front door and strolled my way over to the small marble tile lined pond with small fish in it. They were just minding their own business, and I looked at them, smiling. 'I like this palace. Better than most houses.' I complimented to myself. 'Nothing bad gonna happen here. Not a chance, Nate.' Musubi touched down in my front yard with Minato held by the arms. I smiled and waved my hand up to them. "Musubi! Minato! Good morning!" I greeted warmly, thankful that they arrived rather quickly.

Musubi smiled and made this rather cute pose that felt like it was saying "I'm glad to see you, very much" and "I'm cute, look at me, I'm cute". " Nathan, hi!" she cried out in warm joy.

"Hey, Nathan. You been doing anything lately? Haven't seen you since the beginning of last week." Minato started out with me.

"I've been a little preoccupied with work." I told him with a small grin. "Sorry I haven't called, man. You two been doing anything new lately?" I asked him and Musubi.

Musubi and Minato looked at one another, as if they thought they knew something that I didn't. Then, Minato looked at me and said, " Someone shot Musubi and attacked Seo's sekireis."

I closed my eyes and let out a breath. "I know."

"How?"

"Akitsu and I pursued him. He and I have always been... rivals." I admitted forcefully to him as we began to walk into the house.

"Who is he?" Musubi asked.

"He calls himself 'Morbius'." I told her. 'Morbius? Really?! You're an idiot, Nathan!' I scolded myself. "You don't have to worry, I killed him and took his armor for myself days ago."

Minato looked at me, surprisedly. "Why did you take his armor?" he asked me.

"So that I can fight in the Sekirei Plan along with you and Musubi." I answered. "I have my own suits of armor anyway, I have for years. Might as well do something with them."

Musubi and Minato looked at me in confusion and silence. I smiled at them in amused joy and said, "Sorry, you gotta get your own toys."

Akitsu walked down the stairs and called, "Nathan."

I walked over to her and embraced her formally and yet comfortably. "Yes?" I asked her.

"There's a sekirei outside of the house, on the roof of the nearby building. She told me to ask for you to go out there." she informed me.

I nodded to her. "Alrighty then." I said as I looked to Minato. "I'll be right back. If you'd like anything, ask Akitsu." I told him as I walked my way to the armory.

Once there, I unlocked the door and picked up only so few things. I put on a white painted suit of armor with an orange plexiglass dome visor that had a white X painted on the front; I couldn't see it, but other people would, so it doesn't block my vision. I picked up a rather large and bulky kinetic energy combustion pistol that looked like a really big techno-enhanced revolver, and a rather large Arc-greatsword that looked like that one big weapon that Lexeaus used on Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories; that giant bludgeoning sword that he weilds- which I just called an Earthcrusher. With my arc-gun and earthcrusher, I walked out the front door. I flew my way to the rooftops and stood on a random 5 story facility building, waiting for this other sekirei to show up. I stood there, with my arms crossed and my head slanted down, the boredom of waiting for tedious amounts of time getting to the point where I wanted to simply give up and split. "Ugh, what is taking this other sekirei so long. I'm getting hungry." I asked myself out loud , hearing it through the microphone of my helmet.

"Which is why I wasbusy getting some food for myself." a young woman's voice responded as she landed a few feet behind me.

I turned around to see her, and she stood there with her skirt in her fingers, curtsying to me. 'Is this a joke?' I asked myself. 'It's really funny.' She had really dark, violet tinted hair and the looks of someone who just turned 18 or 19, with no real hieght (probably just 5 feet tall) and CC cups by the looks of them, and she looked both polite and yet rather mischeivous. She smiled at me, as if she knew a lot of good stuff about me. "Nice armor." she complimented.

"Thanks, I guess." I thanked as I asked, "You told Akitsu to get me out here. Is there something you wanted or needed?"

"Yeah, I want to be your sekirei." she told me.

"Why? I just met you." I questioned for her logic. "That's kinda fast."

"Is it wrong to want to have an Ashikabi like you? The powerful and technologic type?" she asked.

"Alright, I get your point." I told her as I took my helmet off. "Nathan Felix. Call me Cable when we're in public and I'm in my armor."

She smiled and she let her dress go. The frills in her short and puffy laced sleeves of the white dress with some black in there and a purple bowtie became more noticeable, and flying sawblades floated in of her volition. "Sekirei 101, Oriha. And I think the other is coming too." she told me with a smile.

"Please tell me it's only one more. I do art commissions, not self prostitution." I begged her.

She giggled as she leapt over and kissed me, blue-violet wings of light emerging on her back. She blushed and said, "Great kissers could be excellent prostitutes."

'Kill me now.' I begged god or something. 'Please.' I took out my Arc-Earthcrusher. "I'm going to have to test your powers for my own reference when this other one gets here and I wing her." I said aloud as she arrived.

She had short, partially kept light red-brown hair and a rather calm and shy expression upon her face. She was dressed in a tightly fitting yellow jumpsuit with the sekirei symbol upon her left hip. The jumpsuit's design looked very similar to the late Bruce Lee's design, and I noticed that firsthand. "Oriha, is this him?" she asked in a rather melancholic and shy voice.

Oriha smiled to her and ruffled my hair. "That's right! This guy's the one!"

"Yeah, I'm an Ashikabi. Nathan Felix. Cable when I'm armored in public." I greeted.

"I'm number 86, Katsuragi." she greeted as she and I walked over to each other ad we kissed, and the white-yellow wings of her contract ignited and shone from her back.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, Musubi. Again." I ordered as I took stance with my Arc-Earthcrusher.

We were in the gym/arena of my house, and we were all gathered in there, training for a bit. Musubi nodded and lunged straight at me, one fist pulled back and rearing for a punch.

I easily swung my Earthcrusher vertically, and she dodged to the left. We each made our own grunting noises and battlecries with each strike and action that we made. We kept attacking and blocking or dodging, with some good hits landing while we were on a 4 feet by 4 and a half feet mat. For one short second, I looked at Akitsu and got distracted. 'Geez, Akitsu looks like she's a queen amongst these women. And yet so calm, but when she looks at me like that...¡Muy calor!' I thought to myself as I had barely dodged a headstrike punch from Musubi, and then I gripped her in my arms and full-on 360º spun in place, gaining momentum to throw her off of the mat. I looked to Minato, who was sitting on a chair-booth like the ones that tennis or volleyball referees sat on, minus the umbrella. "How many points is it?" I asked him.

"I counted seven to five." he answered.

I smiled at Musubi as I helped her get up and I said, "You won by two points. But I totally three-sixtied you off the mat, so we're a little even." I complimented as we all began to leave the gym room and we retired to the living area.

After awhile, something that was rather disturbing came along to pass. Well, it wasn't necessarily disturbing in all actuality, it was more so unexpected that any form of disturbing. From my phone, I heard a text-to-speech that sounded like Stephen Hawking say "Blood on my hands" and it started playing this insane base from a Skrillex song or something. I knew this as an e-mail notification tone, and I knew the song as a remix of the Nobody Beats the Drum song, Blood on my Hands. Minato's phone rang a generic techno-jingle tone for his e-mail tone. We both checked our phones, and in some form of synchronization, we had the same reaction. The e-mail was from Hiroto Minaka, and it spoke of a sekirei in the botanical gardens being offered up as a first prize to the one ashikabi that gets to her first. "Ku's in trouble!" Minato cried out.

I looked at him. "Ku? That sekirei from the e-mail?" I asked out loud.

He looked at me, hardened with the tension that was brought up by worries and thoughts of negativity. "I had a dream about this girl. Her name is Kusano, and she's a little girl. She cried out for my help, Nathan." he told me.

I smiled gleefully. 'He dreamt? He's going to be stronger, I know it!' I thought to myself. I slapped my hands onto his shoulders and screeched in joy. "Wooo! That's awesome, Minato!" I cried out. "Now what's say we get out of here and get that girl?"

Musubi jumped lightly and cheered, "Let's go, Minato!" and they left rather quickly.

I smiled and cracked my knuckles a bit. "Oriha, Katsuragi, you two are with me." I told them as I popped my neck a bit. "The rest of you are going to help me blast a way into the gardens for Minato."

I got in the armor that I had already used once today, but I only had two knives and one other weapon. In my hands was a rather odd looking energy weapon that looked more like some sort of foldable machine, but in the back of it- like any other gun – was the handle and trigger. On the top half of the "shell", and above the trigger was a screen/scope and in the middle, directly in front of the trigger, was the circular chunk of the gun that was the microfusion breeder for ammunition. "It's time to head out." I declared as we walked out of the house.

The glow and smoke of the fire that was only a tad bit far away was the beacon in the night, the focal point that I was sure that all of the other greedy ashikabis were headed to. "Master, our objective is over there." Akitsu told me.

I smiled and nudged my head up, signalling for them to head up. "Don't let the others fall **too** far behind you." I told her, encouraging and complimenting her.

"Master, don't do anything to get hurt." she requested as the three of them leapt away.

I simply stood there, and asked Katsuragi and Oriha, "Are sekireis telepathic?"

"Not that we know." Oriha practically sang in response as I flew my way over to our destination.

I stood on a rooftop that was close to the scene. That garden park was the one that I saw in my dreams, I remembered it well. Except it was on fire this time, and it wasn't for the sekirei I dreamt of. 'The night and the people surrounding it are correct, but... I dunno.' I thought to myself, seeing two thinks that didn't appeal to me. The fire upset me, and the people trying to grab this girl upset me more. "Master, are we ready?" Benitsubasa asked through bluetooth communications.

"Alright. Ladies, give me an analysis of the area." I ordered.

"There are MBI armored vans everywhere, mostly surrounding and outlying the botanical garden." Akitsu summarized. "Ashikabis are gathered all around the garden, and their sekireis are all lower numbers than ours, most of them have their weapons."

I smiled and took out my weapon, holding it in one hand and pointing it upwards. "Ladies, our objective is the defense of the garden, and to blast open an entrance for Minato." I announced. "Akitsu, do you know if anyone is down there that will be on our side?" I asked.

"The flames, they're artificial." she answered. "The sekirei that made them is not going to cause us trouble."

I grinned and pointed my rifle at one of the random Ashikabis down there. "Benitsubasa, blast an entrance for Minato and Musubi to get in. I'll make a distraction right now. On my mark." I told her as I aimed the rifle at my target. "Akitsu and Midasu are our covers, make things as shady and frosty for them as possible. They key is convolution and blindness, okay?" I told them.

"Yes master." Akitsu answered.

"You got it, Cable." Midasu said.

My rifle charged up the energy for the shot. "Oriha, Katsuragi, you're with me. As soon as we're started, you two are helping me fight off all of these idiots. All of you, termination of the enemy sekirei is allowed."

"Yes sir!" Oriha sang out as her sawblades came around her.

"Okay." Katsuragi answered, shyly.

"Okay ladies! Mark!" I shouted in a modulated voice as I sniped one of the random ashikabis on the ground below.

I took out twin arc-knives and put my gun away before I leapt off of the building, Katsuragi and Oriha flying off behind me. As soon as they started to notice that something took down and knocked one of the ashikabis unconscious, I interceipted one of the enemy sekireis upon my landing, gappled onto her and arc knifed her, crushing her ribs to the point of serious fragility as I watched her fall unconscious. "Alright girls, lets go!" I battlecried.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Minato ran into the arboretum and flames closed off the entrance that he had run in through, and I was standing in the middle of a crowd of the enemy, with a sawblade weilder sekirei and what I assumed was a full body pugilist sekirei. I smiled and said, "Alright girls, cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war!" as I leapt forward and began to attack the ashikabis.

I made sure to strike each ashikabi only half as hard as I did their sekireis, each punch or kick or arc-knife strike was almost painful just to dish out. That didn't stop me though, because I was working with my newest sekireis, which made this more and more enjoyable for me. I took down five sekireis and ashikabis before I saw how they fought. Katsuragi was just sweeping through with flurries of varied attacks and sweeps with her fists and kicks, each one in freeflow with the next, and I could almost feel the intense momentum and power that she was gaining from it. Oriha was practically dancing around like a fast paced epic ballet, her sawblades and gears ribboning and flying around overpowering people. She was giggling and singing around as she kept on dance fighting people. All I was doing was simply pounding down and freeflow pounding and arc-knifing the people, but they just kept getting back up; as if fueled by the anger of having their prize taken from them. I smiled and said, "Oriha!" as I tossed up my arc knives and magnetically made them float in mid air. "Let's dance with these idiots!"

She smiled and giggled, as if I was tickling her in a place she had never been tickled before. "Okay~!" she agreed as we began.

We spun around in a fast paced dance as our sawblades and arc-knives circled and zipped all around like a small hurricane of energy and metal. Since nobody could clearly see us anyway, for that time period I had my helmet folded back into plates of plexiglass and metal on my back, and she and I smiled and danced around, unleashing sweeps and blasts of sweeping sawblades and my energy knives. That kept going in a freeflow combination until we made the finale move. She and I kissed deep and yet quickly as her blue-violet wings shone from her back. Then she smiled as we stood back to back, and I was rearing for my part in the finisher. "These flying gears represent my pledge. Cut away the enemies before my Akishabi!" she chanted as the sawblades spun rapidly and irradiated energy, and I lunged forward very tightly and at a short distance as I slashed vertically outward, and the sawblades obliterated what a large ring of slicing wind and kinetic force already didn't. After all of that, we stood in the middle of a crowd of cut up and unconscious people. Katsuragi wasn't affected, for she had jumped to a nearby building beforehand (thank goodness) and Oriha and I simply looked at one another. I smiled and kissed her, and her wings shone again. "You can tell me what that epic move was later." I assured her as my helmet folded out onto my head and put itself back on. "We still have some stuff to worry about." I continued as I saw Katsuragi land at my side from the sky.

'Is Minato doing alright in there?' I wondered. 'Maybe I should send somebody in there, the three of us will do fine on our own.' I kept pondering as the flames subsided and I saw a figure in black jump away, hidden in the leftover smoke and charcoal shadows. Akitsu, Midasu and Benitsubasa landed around me. I looked to the smoking arboretum and kept staring at it, deep in thought. "He's okay, master. I saw Musubi fight another sekirei and win." Akitsu assured, as if reading my mind or something.

"Alright then. We'll wait until he leaves the arboretum with us." I responded as I saw them walk out. "Alright. Ladies, we're going home." I told them as we left the scene, and we saw Musubi and Minato head back to Maison Izumo.

When we got home, I immediately took off my armor and put my weapons away. I walked out, and I noticed how cheerful I was because of the epic pownage that Oriha and I gave out to those other people earlier. 'I don't know what that was, but that was sure as hell as fun as anything I've ever done in my life.' I thought to myself as I found a room with a sigh that said, "Oriha and Nathan's room" with a heart underneath the words. I knocked on the door, and called out, "Oriha? You in there?"

"Oh, uh, yeah! Come in!" she called out as I walked in and found her in her pajamas, eating some gummi bears from a bag.

I smiled and sat next to her, hugging and nuzzling up to her. "You were amazing earlier, Oriha."

She cuddled with me and put a gummi bear in my mouth, giggling and smiling. "It's because you kissed me and danced with me so well, Nathan." she complimented. "If only we had music."

I swallowed the gummi bear and grinned humorously. "If we had music, our dancing would be a bit overkill. I'm a heavy music fan, and it energizes me. Similar to sekireis and kissing their ashikabis." I told her. "And we might have accidentally cut apart the buildings if we were any **more** overkill."

She kissed my cheek and we cuddled. "I'm happy I met you. Our first night, and we danced and kissed." she said as she giggled. "Even though it was combat related."

"I still had a fun time. I got to help out my friend and dance with you, and overkill people." I complimented as I kissed her forehead and got up. "I'm going to sleep now. I've gotta get to work tomorrow."

She looked at me, confusedly. "What's your job?"

I winked at her and smiled, showing teeth. "I'm a commission artist." I told her. "Goodnight~!" I sang out to her in a self modulated high pitched voice as I closed the door behind me.

As I walked my way down the stairs and into the kitchen, I kept smiling to myself. 'Why am I so happy?' I asked myself in my head. 'Probably because of my night dancing being utilized in combat. Plus I have two new housemates.' I kept thinking as I got into the kitchen and opened the pantry to find my stack of golden oreo boxes. 'But I dunno. I mean, earlier in the week, I barely just moved into this palace, and after my friend trolled me with that wake-up call...' I thought to myself as I took out an oreo box and began eating while sitting at the counter. Then, Akitsu walked down the stairs and sat down next to me, looking as frozen as ever. I smiled and munched more. 'And then I met you, Akitsu. My wife.' I bashfully thought and bubbled to myself as I noticed that she was trying to be even **more** blank than she usually is, so I thought to myself, 'Ok, something's up.'

I poked her playfully in the arm. "Akitsu?" I asked her.

She looked to me and her eyes sparkled bashfully, and her cheks turned a light shade of pink. "Yes, Nathan. How are you?" she asked in response.

"Well, let me ask **you**. Why are you being so bashful? It's cute, but I've never seen it before." I told her as I munched on another oreo. "Is there something you'd like?"

Her eyes twinkled excitedly, but her eyes still were frozen like they usually were. 'I guess being her ashikabi means that I can tell from the finest details.' I figured. "I want to go on a date with you, master." she admitted as I almost fell down from confusion and utter surprise.

I almost began to laugh, I was so thrown off by this. I simply smiled and answered, "Well, I can't resist the idea. We can go on a date tomorrow!"

She hugged me and pressed me to her bosom, almost shaking from emotional eruption inside of her. "N-Nathan, I want it tonight. Please, I want it." she begged, her voice like melting and breaking ice. "I love you so much, and I-" she began before I did it.

I took my face from her bosom and kissed her deeply. Her wings of ionized ice and white-blue light shone from the back and then died out. I looked into her eyes and smiled warmly. "Akitsu... I'll go on a date with you. But can it wait for a bit? I have to brush my teeth, then head out to check on Minato... I think a little snow would speed this up, though." I told her.

She smiled a bit and closed her eyes, before kissing me again. "I can't wait, Nathan."

I smiled as I walked over to the armory and took out twin Arc-Knives, twin miniature versions of that rifle I took out into the battle and got in light armor with no helmet. The armor itself was just a plain futuristic soldier's 3rd level armor with a few pouches, sheathes for my weapons and mid-high tech metal and cybernetic covers. I walked out of the house with my stuff in tow and flew my way over to Maison Izumo with the rockets in the suit.


	10. Sweat and Snow

Snow fell as I landed on a nearby building from my house, already on my way back from Maison Izumo. I looked up to the sky and smiled. "Oh boy, I'm getting excited." I said aloud to myself.

I took a breath of the sweet, fresh and frosty air that she whipped up for me, and I breathed out the frosty white vapor that comes from the warm ehalation in a cold night. Seeing this, I smiled and put two fingers in my mouth and whistled really loud, signalling her to come out.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

I arrived at Maison Izumo and walked into the inn, thankfully without my helmet so that I don't upset Miya. I walked in and found that silver haired man from earlier on walking down the stairs. For some reason, he wasn't as suave and stylish looking as the last time; he looked much more fatigued and tired. He was sweating, I could feel it, almost like he was radiating heat like a fire on the rise. I looked around, and thanfully nobody was in the room, or within listening distance. I looked back at him. "Makes sense for you to be such a crabbypants when we met. Your body was probably radiating fire like a reacting sekirei when I was walking over to Matsu as well." I told him. "But it wasn't like you were reacting to **me**, was it?" I asked.

He snarled a bit at me, angry that I made a comparison like that; and yet he looked as though he was surprised that I found out something that he thought I knew, even though I probably didn't know. "How do you know I'm-" he started to interrogate.

"—a sekirei? You just told me. And in me, your secret is safe, trust me. Just as you and Minato, as well as a few other people in this house know about the fact that I'm Cable." I interrupted him. "Welcome to my world, mister..." I started before realizing that I didn't know his name.

"Kagari." he told me.

"Kagari." I recited. "I'm going to check on my friend. I have a lady waiting." I told him as I walked into the backyard to find Minato sitting on the back porch.

Minato was sitting with a little blonde girl in a small light green dress, her eyes were emerald green and her skin was a peachy color. She cuddled with him, and I noted to myself that he winged her already, so it made sense. I smiled in a pride for him. 'Just a week ago I met my first sekirei, and now he has his second. Apparently best friends get the same bonuses in this game.' I thought to myself. 'Way to go, kid.' I sat down next to him. He looked to me and I smiled at him. "You have any problems in the botanical garden?" I asked him.

He shook his head and pet Kusano's head, making her smile and suggle more. "Nothing Musubi couldn't handle. One sekirei, and that's really it." he answered. "What about you? You did most of the work, how was it?" he asked me, as if concerned.

I smiled and chuckled merrily. "I had the most fun today. I met two sekirei, and one of them danced with me while turning our dancing into epic overkill for the enemy." I answered. "So much fun."

"How do you turn dancing into overkill?" he asked. "Are you psychic or able to make explosions?"

"Oriha can manipulate the movements of sawblades that she has. And I magnetcially made arc-knives fly around as well." I explained as I looked to the sleeping Kusano. "What can **she** do?" I asked.

"She can control the plants." he answered. "It's actually pretty cool. But I'm curious. About Akitsu."

I smiled and took out my arc-knives. "Did you know that my tech can enable me to fight sekirei? The weapons I have are imbued with kinetic energy, and my guns are even more special. Oh, but anyway, what about Akitsu?" I dawdled and then asked him.

He blinked in awe at my arc-knife and then he re-focused and asked me. "What is her power? And how did you meet?"

I smiled and put my knives away. "She fell unconscious in my front yard from that morning when John Hoffman woke me up at the beginning of the week, and I nursed her back to health. I told her that I liked the snow, and I painted her my first commission in my house's studio room. I walked you home, and then it began to snow." I began to answer him.

"Wait, are you saying-?" he asked as his eyes widened in awe. "She can control the weather?"

I chuckled and scratched my head. "Ice. Not the weather." I answered him. "She made it snow, and... well, we just fell in love." I said as I just remembered about Akitsu. "Oh, crap, I'd better head back to her. Remember to gimme some business, you get a discount anyway." I reminded him as I ignited the rockets and flew out of there.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

She landed on her feet, a foot or two away from me. She was wearing a one-shoulder strapped, almost no back fabric white dress made of perma frost crustals fined down to fibers. I smiled at her warmly and adoringly. 'Oh, Akitsu...' I bubbled to myself. "How do I look, master?" she asked me in such a cute and yet still monotone way.

I kissed her deeply, her wings of light blazing cooly again. I giggled bashfully and said, "You look beautiful, as always, Akitsu. But the snowfall brings it out with your dress even more."

She smiled a bit and her eyes flaired with delight from pleasing me. "You're always enjoying me, master-"

I held her chin in my thumb and finger genty, interrupting her. "I'm your lover, Akitsu. My name is Nathan." I corrected her with a kiss.

Her wings bazed out again, and she gasped and sputtered with delight, and I could tell that excitement and joy were boiling up and bubbling out of her. Her eyes were closed and she was blushing everywhere. "Nathan, I'm going to melt if you keep doing that." she both warned and begged of me.

I kissed her and held her close. I whispered and breathed sexy for her, "We should take this date to the bedroom, my love."

We looked into each other's were filled with the beastly glinting light of excitement, and hers were melting ice in a pool of hot, warm cocoa goodness. I smiled excitedly. "Or we could do it here." I suggested.

"No, the bedroom, Nathan." she simpered, as if her lust was melting and crackling down her icy voice and as if she was going to burst just by touching me.

I kissed her again and whispered, "Yes, mistress."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

We were naked in our bedroom, and we cound still see the snowfall outside of the house through a window. The room was barely lit with a few pink-red tinted lightbulbs in our lamps, and forest scented sandalwood incense was burning in the room to give the room a good aroma. I walked my way over to her and gently held and rubbed her breast on one hand and her head in the other. Her body began to fill up with the delicious heat and excitement, just the same as I was. Her eyes began to erupt the scrumptious feeling of lust and enflamed love, and her face practically begged for me without even a single word from her mouth. I kissed her deeply and held her close, feeling my erection rub against her streaming and moist vagina. She immediately bolted out a moan of passionate and teased hunger and pleasure. Her mouth was squirming while we kissed and she moaned in my mouth until she pulled out and cried out, "Please, Nathan, do whatever you want to me! I'll do anything you say!"

I smiled warmly to her, happy to hear this devotion from her. 'I'll always love you and desire you, my Akitsu.' I thought to myself as I kissed her neck a bit and whispered in her ear, "Get on all fours on the bed."

Obediently, she got on her hands and knees on the bed. Her vagina was actually dripping with excitement before I decided to start eating it out and pleasing her. She began to moan and cry out in pleasure as I licked and used my mouth on her vagina, unhurriedly and deeply. Then, she actually moved her hips to press herself deeper into my mouth. My eyes closed, I held her butt in my hands and made wild tongue dancing and thrashing in her, using my lips to tease her and keep her going as well. 'You're so awesome, Akitsu! And so deliciously horny!' I cried out in my mind as I kept going faster and deeper in my tongue movements. Then she asked me, "D-do I taste g-good Nathan-n?"

I gave a kiss to it, and answered, "You taste wonderful, Akitsu." before I kept licking her deep.

She pressed her vagina to me more and cried out, "Nathan! Ooooaaaahhh!" and had an ejaculation in my mouth.

Her orgasm was **beyond** amazing. It was so much of nothing less than a frosty freezy sweet goodness that came from her, and it had this peachy accent to the mix, it turned out amazing though. No, it was even better. The words didn't even **exist** to describe the goodness he tasted as she cried out loudly in pleasure. She lied down on her back, and she was sweating and breathing heavily and embarrasedly, as if she was going to heat up and hunger for even more of me. "D-did I cum too early, master?" she asked as I kissed her lips.

I giggled and kept french kissing her until I began to suck on her breasts. They were so soft, and so big, and so warm and smooth. I kept sucking and licking her more and more, and all the while massaging them with my hands, and she was just crying out and nearly screaming in sexual joy. "Aah! Yes, Nathan! Oooh mmmm! Nathan, eat me more! I want your love!" she kept crying out for me, invigorating me and rallying me to do more.

Then, I stuck my penis inside of her and began to thrust and push it into her vagina. She yelled out, "Aaaaauuuoaaaaaaah! Nathan!" in passionate joy as her vagina quivered and tightened around my dick.

I pushed in deeper and pulled back, and repeated the motions softly to begin with. She grabbed onto the headboard of the master bed and as I kept humping into her and thrusting us back and forth, the bed began to shake with us. She moaned and cried out loudly and passionately. Her eyes were closed a perfect tight and she cried out, "Oh! N-Nathaan! Aah! Aah! Mmmooah!" over and over again, and that envigorated me to keep going faster and harder for her.

I asked her in a grunting tense, "How do you—nngh!— like it, Akitsu?" as I kept thrashing inside of her.

"I—aauhmm!— love it, Nathan! Climax with me, please!" she begged in response as it happened.

My muscles tightened and my flesh became white-hot as I felt my orgasm flow into her, and hers splashed onto me. We both grunted and cried out in love, holding one another in our postures while our bodies gave way for one another. Then, we fell to the bed and simply lied on the bed with one another, looking into each other's eyes. We were sweating, breathing fast and panting, and her body was blushing everywhere. I smiled and cuddled with her. "Akitsu, you're my favorite ice lady, you know that?" I asked her.

She kissed me deeply, her tongue trying to pin mine down and have its way with it. We began rubbing each other as we kept kissing deeper and deeper, until she looked into my eyes, hers all misty and fiery at the same time, and she pulled out of the kiss, smiling a crack. "I never took you for someone who likes to do these things with their mouths, Nathan." she teased.

I smiled nervously and giggled even more so. "Are you **sure** you can't hear my thoughts?" I asked her. "I'm starting to think you can."

She didn't even reply with words before she kissed the tip of my dick, putting some saliva into the kiss peck as she began to enclose her lips around it. I closed my eyes tightly and grunted as she began to suck deeper on my dick. The icy warmth of her mouth made it grow bigger in her mouth, and my whole body tingled in reaction to her. 'Yup, I'm gonna die a happy man!' I thought to myself as the unexpected happened. It was so deep in her mouth that it actually hit the back of her throat, and she gagged in pleasure a bit. That actually kept going until I grunted out loudly, almost screaming at that, "Akitsu—!"

My muscles heated and tightened up again as my orgasm almost overflowed her mouth. Nonetheless, she drank it all down, almost hungrily. After a minute, she pulled out and we were laying with each other again. I smiled, weakly and fatiguedly. "How was it?" I asked her.

We looked at eachother and began to laugh a little bit, until we fell asleep. I thought that my slumber would host no dreams, believe me. But when it came to my dreams, all was open to debate. I was in the middle of a random street junction, and I was dressed in my white armor, but my helmet was folded out and pulled back. I held twin special arc-knives with knuckle guards that had small arc-spikes on the outer part of the guard. I looked up and forward to find a woman with long, flowing sunlit hair, blowing in the wind. The air seemed to be a bit humid and moist, more than usual; kind of like when it was about to rain. That made start to warm up inside already, but then it frozen in fear when she turned around to me. Although she wasn't very scary looking, not at all... *ahem*!

She had lapiz lazuli eyes, shaped like a combination of the most beautiful ovalular form and the eyes of an angry dragon ready to hurl its might at me. Her mouth was in a disapproving frown and her face was similar to Akitsu's somehow. But Akitsu was more like ice, perma forzen and emotionless. This woman was more so stern and angry, yet something told me that she wasn't frozen this way all the time. She looked down at me and shouted, "Ashikabi!"

I took stance, startled by her yelling. "Y-yeah?" I studdered a bit.

"Prepare thyself, for your demise!" she shouted out as the whole dream became blackened out by that same nightmarish shade that usually came around now.

I stood on my two feet, unarmed and un-armored. "Oh, great. What now?" I demanded from it.

" 'What now' you ask?" the voice gurgled. "Nothing, my soul brother. Is it wrong to simply be friendly?"

"You scare the living shit out of me, so the answer is 'yes'." I answered.

The voice actually laughed and all of the collected darkness took a cloudy humanoid form and the blank city came up around us. "Is **this** better?" it asked me.

"Can I punch you?" I asked in response.

It crossed its arms disapprovingly and said, "No."

I snarled and glared at him. "Then this isn't better." I said, as I spat at the ground. "Go away."

"Why do you hate—?" it began to interrogate.

"You know damn well why, you're a remnant of someone that... passed on years ago. You're an afterimage of a fallen dream, a shadow of the good times." I snapped interruptingly. "You are nothing but something I want to be rid of."

"But I am bound to you like he was. Like—" he began to argue.

"Don't you **dare** compare yourself to my sekireis and don't even **think** for one f**king second that you are anything like Akitsu!" I yelled at him, my face becoming red with anger and my body powering up furiously. "**She** is special to me, and **you** are just the after effects of a calamity!" I screamed.

He was silent, and we simply just stood there. "Are you so angry about what happened to him that you're willing to blot out everything?" he asked.

I sneered at him. "I will always honor Alan for what he and I had together, but **you** are just trying to control me! You **will** get out of my head or I will kill us both, and don't think I won't." I barked at him. "Either that, or you will balance this out with a light side of Alan's afterimage."

We both stood there in the silent tension, and he was pondering about his next action. 'This idiot brought up **Alan** of all people, and now I just want to punch this motherfu—' I thought to myself until he spat it out. "Fine, Nathan. You may have what you want." he answered reluctantly.

Then, as if the good lord had graced me with a thought, I woke up in the bed with my Akitsu. Upon the opening of my eyes and the sight of my lover, I smiled. "You may have what you want." were his words, still echoing in my ears. I got up to my feet and walked down the stairs and into the kitchen to grab some munchies. I frowned and my eyes became misty with sadness. 'I hope I know what I'm doing... Alan.' I thought to myself as I ate some food, slowly.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

I got in my white armor with the dome visor and I put on the cases for my knives, and put the knuckle guarded ones in my scabbards. I had me helmet in my hand as I locked the door to the armory and began to pop my neck as I walked into the living room, towards the door to the front yard. Before I could make it out, I noticed that Benitsubasa was following me out. I stopped and looked to her. "Benitsubasa, I'm not sure you should accompany me for the winging of another sekirei." I told her.

She pouted irritatedly at me. "You need someone to go out there with you, and you know it—!" she started.

"No, I don't. I'm perfectly capable on my own, Benitsubasa." I told her.

She held me by my arms and shook me a little bit. "You're. A. **Human**, Nathan! Face it, Cable isn't going to be invincible, not alone." she barked. "I'm going with you, and that's that, mister. Got it?!"

I stood there, baffled by her resolve. She was blushing a cherry red, and she looked like she was going to break like Akitsu's ice when she gets flustered. I smiled and cackled merrily. "Alright, Benitsubasa. Come out with me, but bring Katsuragi too. We need as much pugilist power as possible, so let's get rockin'." I answered with a warm grin.

She smiled, overjoyed by the fact that I wanted her with me. "Anything you say Nathan—!" she cried out.

"Cable." I corrected as I winked and put on my helmet.

She closed her eyes and grinned. "Alright... 'Cable'." she agreed.


	11. Tsukiumi

Flashback:

I was covered in dirt and a few small bruises and scrapes, holding swords in my hands. In one hand was my dark sword, slim and sharp blade, bandaged hilt, and the small skull with the living crimson iris on its forehead at the pommel level. And in my other hand was a white-silver hilt that was finely made with a white-grey leather wrap grip on the hilt. The blade of that weapon was made of an iris crystal material that was a rather big and sharp blade, wider, but not longer. And like the other weapon, the crystal bladed sword had a darker shade of white-silver bald headed face with its mouth closed and its glowing eyes shining violently, the eye in the middle of the forhead made of a flawless diamond cornea and an iris crystal plasma material as its eye color. I was panting and still maintaining a good stance of combat. I spat at the ground in frustration. "Not cool Alan!" I complained.

We were in the Fossil Creek area, the river was flowing to my left a few meters. Boulders and river rocks littered with the pine and plant life all around us, the clear jet blue skies were giving way to the painted clouds moving up all around the heavens. "Now, now, no getting butt- hurt Nathan." he told me as I saw him land on his feet.

He had features and looks almost just like mine, except his nose was slightly smaller toned and his eyes were more care-free than mine were. He also wore slim glasses with black frames and small and slim rectangular lenses. His eyes were a hazel color, and mine were a darker color than his. He smiled at me, and held his sword upon his shoulder. A silver hilt with black leather and vinyl wrapping, and half of the blade was obsidian with a wing-like design for the most part, the edge of the blade was curvy and sharp; and the other half was a white-gold sunlit curvy blade with a white and feathery wing design on the body of the blade as well. It all made an effective zweihander, and it was a similarity to my twin blades. I pouted my mouth annoyedly. "Alan, you keep overpowering me! It's unfair!" I complained more.

He scoffed and chuckled smugly. "Nate, you're not going to get far by being a complainer." he scolded me lightheartedly and calmly. "You have to get what you want by simply grabbing it." he kept going as he used his free hand and signalled me to go to him. "Again." he demanded.

I withdrew my blades, and then dashed forward, slashing vertically outward. A ring of pure slicing energy cut apart the nearby rocks, and almost cut him. Except he dodged, by jumping into the air. I darted my eyes up at him, and smiled before taking both of my swords into the ground, making destructive enrgy boil up and burst out and upwards to Alan. The light of the enrgy and the flare of sunlight blinded all view.

I blinked and shook my head back and forth, clearing out the flashback in my sights as reality set back in. I was standing on top of a 20 story building with my arms crossed. I was in my white Cable armor with twin kuckle-guard arc-knives holstered at my legs and I could already tell that **it** was primed and ready for me. _Click!_ "Master, do you see her yet?" Katsuragi's voice asked over the bluetooth comm.

I looked with my eyes for her, and answered, "No, I don't. Do you girls?"

"No, master. I'm sorry." Katsuragi answered.

"I'll keep looking, Cable." Benitsubasa stated.

I smiled and said, "Katsuragi, no need to be sorry, darling. Just keep looking for her."

I popped my neck and my knuckles before I heard someone land on their feet behind me. I was silent before I curled in my toes to pop them. "You're not going to ask about the armor, are you?" I asked the person behind me as I transmitted my location to the girls and turned around.

She had long and flowing blonde sunlit hair, lapis lazuli eyes, and a black dress with white fabric undergarbs under the dress-clothing. The was wearing light brown thigh-high combat sexy boots as well. She crossed her arms and leaned to one side a tiny bit. "Thou must be that armored ashikabi I saw at the arboretum as of late. Cable, I think." she surmised to me.

I smiled appreciatively at her, though she couldn't see it. "Wow, have you been looking at me doing that?" I asked.

She scoffed disapprovingly and her face became irritated. "Thou must have a reason for actually taking up arms in the Sekirei Plan even though thou art a human monkey." she barked. "What beist this reason?" she interrogated.

"To do the same thing I've done since I moved to this cooky city." I answered to her barking. "To help my friends. And speaking of that, are you curious as to the reason why I've been up here?" I asked her.

She reacted all right, I could almost feel the aftershock of the heat wave that just nearly consumed her as she almost fell down. She trembled and fidgeted while holding herself before looking at me angrily, a death-lust fire in her oceanic eyes. "Thou wishest to make me thy sekirei?!" she shouted at me.

I nodded my head. "I could already tell that you'd hate the idea. The dream suggested that I'd be prepared for death." I summarized to her as I took out my arc knives and took stance. "Which is why I want to earn your respect in battle."

Another wave of the bodily heat from her, and then water began to draw up around her. 'Water? Wait, it's filled with some sort of energy membrane, this isn't normal water. She's a—' I thought to myself, smiling and it gave way to an appreciative laugh. "Water! Oh my god, your power is water?!" I cried out.

She sneered angrily at me. "And what if it is, monkey?!" she roared as she thrust her hand at me. "Water Celebration!"

A cascade of the ocean-blue water fell at me, and it knocked me down to the top of a lower building. 'Water! Water means rain... I hope.' I thought to myself as I folded my helmet back so that she could see me. She landed a few feet in front of me, and I smiled in my overpowering and drunkening joy. "'And what if it is'? If it is, I'm officially glad I even met you!" I told her as I dodged another Water Celebration. "Why do you not like me?" I asked as I put my knives away.

Her face turned red with anger. "Because like any other man, you want nothing more than to use my body for all of your sick purposes." she yelled at me as the water went away. "That's all you monkeys want!"

I spat at the ground. "I'm not a monkey, I'm a human—!"

"They're the same—!"

"First off, monkeys are lesser creatures, in terms of body and intelligence. Humans are smarter, and a hundred thousand times better than monkeys. I don't care if you have super powers, don't compare me to a monkey."

She sneered as I dodged another Water Celebration from her. "Cable, we're coming down there—!" Benitsubasa shouted.

"—You will do no such thing, Benitsubasa. You and Katsuragi are to keep anyone else from getting into our business." I barked on the communications net.

"... Nathan." she said. "Are you sure?"

The woman looked at me, bubbling with anger. "You brought other sekireis into this? You vile, shameless monkey!" she shouted at me as she lunged at me, water on the rise to be used at me.

I did little more than kick her in the face with a left sweep of the leg and it knocked her down. I walked over to where she landed, yards away. "You think I'm some defiler. You think I'm just going to harm you, is that it?" I asked her.

She struggled a small bit, but she made it up toher elbows and legs, glaring at me. "Of course! Why else would you so obviously overpower me and have your way with me, once victorious?!" she demanded me to answer.

"I can't overpower you, I'm in technologically enhanced armor. You would naturally beat me." I answered.

"What does that—?" she started to retort.

"And I don't plan on defiling you. I plan on giving you a room and maybe doing an artist's commission for you. And feeding you when you're hungry. Being there for you when you need me. Fighting with you when you're angry. I don't defile people." I told her as she began to react more, almost like a nuclear meltdown inside of her.

She looked up at me as she fell to the ground and cast another Water Celebration at me, which I easily dodged. "You lie!" she shouted.

I was silent as I looked to her. "I was taught not to defile or destroy without due reason. By saying that you think I'll defile you, you have said that I would dishonor my older brother—may he rest in peace— and his lessons that we both learned." I barked at her, and then just thinking about that made me all melancholy. "I don't want you so that I can 'have my way with' you. I want to protect my friends." I told her as my dark sword appeared in my right hand.

She gasped as it appeared from a black light and a cloud of ebony mist. I was silent, and standing over her. "Can you make it rain?" I asked her.

She studdered a tiny bit. "What does that have to do with—?"

"It's one of the few things I'd expect from you. I like the weather... always have." I sombered as I clenched onto my sword tightly. "If you show me the curteousy of making it rain right now, I will leave you alone. Unless you wish differently, I won't even be a memory for you." I assured her.

We simply stood there, and my expression was hard and emotionless— almost icy, like Akitsu. 'I hardly care anymore. Let **her** make the decisions instead of me.' I scolded myself for trying to do this. 'If what she can do is enough to bring me out of this little mood swing, then that's my quota.'

Clouds began to roll in over time, and she began to pale a bit from concentration. 'So it takes a lot of power to control the weather. Good to know, in that sense.' I heard myself as rain began to utterly pour down all around. I looked up to the sky and put my helmet back out, smiling in a satisified and appreciative way. "We're going home. If she wants to have me as a partner, she'll find me." I told the girls as I flew my way home.

I landed in the front yard and took off my armor as soon as I made it into the house. I put it in the armory and got a phone call from Minato. I picked up my phone after hearing Immigrant Song loop over once and greeted, "Yo, Minato. 'Sup man?"

"Nathan, hey. Can you do me a favor?" he asked.

"Another one? Alright, take your pick, man." I answered, awaiting his request.

"I have to go to college tomorrow, so can you do me the favor of entertaining my sister, Kusano and Musubi until I pick them up?" he asked.

I smiled. "Absolutely, man. No problem. You're telling your siser the cover story, though." I answered his request.

"Why me?" he asked. "Isn't that your job?"

I chuckled. "No, it isn't. She's not **my **sister."

"Alright, alright. I'll tell her a cover story. Just don't go around in your armor, alright?" he begged in such an energetic and freaked out way.

I smiled. "No doubt about it." I assured him.

"Alright, well I have to go. Miya made lunch." he tried to excuse for me.

"Dude, go munch on some good stuff. I gotta eat too." I told him as we both said goodbye and hung up.

I made my way to the kitchen and got a drink. "Nathan." Akitsu called out to me, quietly.

I turned my head to my left and found her walking down the stairs, holding a small, medium length and slimmer-than-most trunk painted black. "This was delivered here about two hours ago, when you and Benitsubasa and Oriha were out. Here." she let me know as she gave it to me

I smiled and kissed her cheek. "Thanks, Akitsu. Oh, could you do me a solid and make me something to munch on?" I thanked and requested her.

She nodded. "Of course, what would you like?"

"Uh, something with protein and carbohydrates. I'm going to need to try and get some work done for money, and I have to run an errand." I answered her.

Then, I took the chest to the living room and opened it. When I did, my eyes became quarter sized, and I felt my heart almost stop. My breathing almost came to a sudden stop, and the fact that it was even here amazed me. "N-no way." I gasped out as my eyes focused on nothing else but that.

"Oh, Nathan, there you are!" Midasu called out as she poked my shoulder. "Hey, I think that you need to give us all a portrait or two... or five! I want a pain...ting...?" she tapired off as she saw me looking with stone hard focus on the package's contents. "Nathan?" she asked.

"Yes... Yes, I'm.. I'm fine." I replied as I began to laugh hysterically.

"What's so funny, Nate?" she asked. "Is it some weird American thing?"

I kept laughing hysterically and loudly, almost rolling and containing myself. Hysteria in my laughter became joy, and joy became satisfaction. "Midasu, everything is funny. And everything is just perfect. I got the best thing ever." I answered as I tapired off my laughing. "I never thought I'd see it at all."

She looked over my shoulder and asked me, "What exactly are you so excited about, Nate? It doesn't look very special."

I smiled at her with a beastly glint in my eyes and an excited grin. " 'Not very special'?!" I cried out boastingly as I grabbed it and held it up. "This is a legend!"

In my hand was a red scabbard to a red hilt with red fabric on the hilt decor. The hilt guard was ovalular with dragon designs cut as hole sculpts. I pulled the sword to reveal a one foot ten inches single edged red blade. The blade was razor sharp, and on a legendary scale. I put the blade back in its scabbard and said, "Oh yeah, that's what I'm talking about."

Midasu blinked in confusion. "What is so special about it? It's a red samurai katana." she asked and slightly lectured.

I pouted my mouth angrily, but yet not angrily too. "This is more than just 'eh rehd sehmereh sehrd'!" I immitated in an irritated fashion. "This is the one. The legendary samurai sword. Muramasa." I corrected in a flashy way.

"Nathan, your lunch is ready—." Akitsu called out, holding a glass plate with a hot sandwich with red mean and cooked onions and pickles, until she looked at me holding Muramasa. "Oh, I've heard of that. Muramasa, right?" she asked me.

I smiled and gestured to her. "Thank you! See? She knows about this!"I cried out as I saw the food. "Oh, my food. Thanks sweetie." I told her as I walked over to her, kissed her lips and took the plate.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

I stood in the front yard, holding Masamune in my hands. The sky was clear now, and the night was an ebon-blut tinted color with the stars barely able to outshine from the lights of the city. It was about 9 or 10 o'clock p.m, and I was all alone. I took a deep breath with my eyes closed, and I slowly opened them. "C'mon, Nathan, pull up!" Alan's voice said in my ears. "You always were the goofy one." he chuckled a bit. "Okay, remember to keep your eye on the target. Don't force out your power, just bubble it up and let it out." he taught me, echoing in my ears.

I looked towards a glass bottle on a stone bench, it used to be a light beer Heineken bottle, until I drank it down to emptiness hours ago. My eyes were focused on it. "Take a deep breath in..." I said out as I breathed in again. "And..." I breathed out and sharpened my senses, trying not to strain my muscles. "Out."

I raised my blade and then swung it down with both arms, also stooping down in momentum a bit. A wave of wind and kinetic force as thin as paper flew forward, and in the span of a split second, the bottle fell down— in two perfect symmetrical halves. Seconds later, the stone bench fell in halves too. My eyes widened as I sheathed Muramasa. "Well, good to know I can do that..." I tapired off as I pondered a small bit, counciling myself. "No, I have to be discreet about this. I'll use the blade, but I have to stick with my tech. Alan..." I said out loud to myself.

"Dost thou suffer from some sort of madness, talking to thine self?" the water sekirei's voice called out as I heard a small burst of air and her feet touch down on the ground.

I felt a quick tingle to my skin as I reacted to the mass surprise, as I turned to my left and held the edge of Muramasa to her neck, shifting to the posture like a burst of sound, a whisper. She stepped back, and I did the same. I held Muramasa in my hand as I looked to the woman. "Forgive my sudden reaction. I'm not used to surprise... Wait, why are you here?" I asked her. "You kept saying that I would defile you and stuff. I'm a 'monkey', I'm 'vile', I'm 'shameless', right?"

She closed her eyes momentarily. "Yes, I said those things afore. But... thou said my powers mattered to you. And something said that you didn't mean for a **need** for strength. But for... water?" she surmised and questioned before opening her eyes.

Her lapis lazuli eyes were so beautiful, and she looked so calm and concerned in her outwardly stern way. "I saw you. It strained you out to make it rain today. Yes, I like water. You're a water sekirei. Big deal, perfect match. If I were to indulge like that, I'd be enslaving you and proving your mean words right." I told her as I saw another bottle prepped on a brick. "Hold on one second." I requested as I took a forward stance at the direction of my new target.

I sharpened my vision and then closed my eyes. "In..." I said as I breathed in and out before opening my eyes. "Out." I finished as I slashed vetrically once more, and the brick and bottle split in symmetrical halves and fell to each side.

She looked at me with a hinto of impressed amazement. Her brows raised and her eyes very slightly widened, she bust out, "I'm impressed. Art thou somehow superpowered too?" she asked me.

I chuckled. "American, not supernatural." I said. "It's nothing more than a heightened use of my muscles and kinetic energy." I explained.

"American? What is your name?" she asked me questioningly.

I looked at my red-tinted reflection in Muramasa's blade. "Nathan Eugene Felix. In my armor, I am Cable." I exposed myself to her. "This would be a good time for you to tell me your name as well." I told her as I looked up into her eyes.

She blushed a strawberry red as soon as we made eye contact and I put Muramasa in its scabbard at my hip. Her eyes became misty and wanting of me. "Tsukiumi. Sekirei number 9." she answered me.

I smiled warmly to her. "The water sekirei, huh? I'm not going to lie to you, it's going to be a lot of fun being your ashikabi. It's a shame you wouldn't really **like** that, from what you said."

She looked at me in a concerned and yet confident way. "'If she wants to have me as a partner, she can find me.'" she quoted me. "That is what thou hadst said to the other sekirei that were with you earlier today. As thou can see, I have found you. Dost that not give a clue to my liking?" she asked with a confident smile.

I smiled appreciatively. "Alrighty then... Tsukiumi." I replied bashfully.

We kissed slowly and unhurriedly, long and deep. Aqua blue-white wings of light blazed out from her back, and we were both filled with this delicious heat of love. 'Alan, I think we're gonna have a lot of entertainment in this. You get to watch me from heaven, and I get to be in my **own** heaven from now on.' I thought to myself as we pulled out from our kiss, looking into each other's eyes; I was smiling gleefully and she was smiling more so in a satisfied and loving way. "I'm yours. Now and forever." she said to me. "I'm your wife now."

I fumbled back. "Wife?" I asked.

"You called?" Akitsu asked from the doorway to the house.

I could already tell from the death glare between Akitsu and Tsukiumi that this was going to be far from pretty. I held the hilto of Muramasa tightly as I sweated out like a pig and gulped some salive in order to moisturize my throat. 'At least I have you, Muramasa. At least I have you.' I thought to myself.


	12. Idiocy

"*ahem* Yes, well, this is going to be a lot of work, isn't it?" I asked in the most nervous of ways as I sat on the couch in the living room, holding Muramasa in my hands, still in the scabbard on my lap.

Tsukiumi and Akitsu were giving one another the ultimate death glare, kind of like in an anime where you see two people glaring at one another and there's two colliding bolts of lightning clashing and pushing against one another in between their faces. It was almost just like that. Akitsu was still maintaining her icy corona of emotionless expression while giving the satanic death glare, but Tsukiumi was just about to flip out, she was that hard and angry in her facial expression. "Tell me this, just who art thou who can even think of adressing him as husband?" Tsukiumi growled and demanded in her questioning.

"Number 7. Akitsu." she answered. "I am his wife."

I raised a finger. "Soon to be wife." I intervened.

She looked to me and nodded, her eyes glistening longingly at me. "Exactly, Nathan." she agreed.

Tsukiumi turned her gaze to me, and began to tremble an angry fist. "What is the meaning of this?! Are we in some sort of pyramid style harem?! Is this Akitsu on the top?!" she kept yelling at me questioningly.

I scooted away from her in order to give myself and Muramasa some breathing room. "This isn't a pyramid, its a palace. Two, given that you two are ice and water, you both hold similar placement. I met Akitsu first, so for now, since I know her the best, yes. I'm not going to really use placement in battle though, so stop being so worried and angry." I answered her.

She heard my answer and calmed down. "Then I suppose it's only a matter of time for me to become thy true wife, Nathan. In the meantime, I shall be cooking your dinner." she simply told me as she strolled to the kitchen.

Akitsu and I looked to one another, confused about my new sekirei. "Does she know that you ate already?" she asked.

"I'm hungry again anyway, so I'm not gonna mind another meal." I answered while smiling to her. "I'm gonna head down to the train station tomorrow, unarmored." I told her. "I'll need you to tell Katsuragi to tail me in case there's an ass hole ashikabi out there that wants to play dirty and outnumber me with sekireis or strong men."

She blinked and nodded. "Of course, master." she replied.

I smiled warmly and giggled. "That's just so hot, Akitsu."

She looked into my eyes and I did the same into hers. "Nathan, how exactly did you get Muramasa sent to you? I thought it world be a natural treasure." she asked and explained her way of curiousity.

"That isn't the **real** Muramasa. It's just a sword forged by the swordsmith, Muramasa. This is his true finest and yet most grim creation. Muramasa." I answered. "It was originally going to be my brother's. But he had told me that once I'm ready, it would find its way to me. Looks like he didn't lie." I kept going as I began to drift off. "Alan..."

Then I heard Oriha cry out, "Cool sword, Nathan!" in her sing-song way that she usually spoke with.

She bubbled and ran her way over to us and looked at me with sparkles in her eyes. She had that cute little grin of awe on her face and she asked, "Will you dance with me with that?"

I smiled and giggled before kissing her lips lightly. "Hey, I still need to dance with everyone else. Even Tsukiumi, so we gotta wait for us to dance all overkill again." I answered.

"Pleeeeeeeeeease? I'll do anything you want!" she cried out, almost seductively with the song in her voice.

Thinking about that made me realize why Minato always had those nosebleeds around women when things got frisky. "Hey, no means no for now. Now, I'm gonna try and make good conversation with Tsukiumi, I'm fearful enough to anger her already." I said as I walked my way to the kitchen and sat down at the counter. I put Muramasa on the countertop and popped my neck fatiguedly and tiredly. "Ahh, thanks for cooking tonight, Tsukiumi." I thanked as I saw how she was actually cooking rather precisely and extremely well. She was cooking something in a pot, with white onions, carrots and other ingredients, especially beef.

She looked over to me and then back at her cooking. "Think nothing of it, dear." she told me in such a soft way, it sounded new coming from her.

I chuckled. "I've never been called 'dear' before. By sekirei or otherwise." I exposed to her. "It's both funny and comforting to hear it from you."

"'Funny'? How am I funny?" she snapped interrogatively.

I raised a brow, confusedly. "Replace 'funny' with beautiful, powerful and temperamental. And how? Where do I start?" I responded to her snap of attitude.

Her face turned a very cherry red, and her movements became faster and more stiff. "Let's not make with the flattery right now, Nathan. I **am** cooking and my hands would be burnt with any slip up." she battered out as she kept going.

I picked up Muramasa and stood on my feet, away from the counter. "I appreciate you coming to my house, Tsukiumi. Welcome to my family." I told her as I walked away.

XXXXXXXXXXX

I walked down the sidewalk, with Muramasa at my hip. Thankfully a cloaking device in my person kept people from seeing the crimson blade. In my ears were earbuds, playing the David Bowie song: As the World Falls Down from the music files of my iPhone 5-c. Muramasa was comfortably bouncing from my leg a little bit with each step. I walked slowly and in synch with the music and the wind blew rather softly for a windier season. I was wearing a pair of jean pants, a black t-shirt and a black open buttoned long sleeve overshirt. My hair was combed back and my eyebrows were trimmed very neatly by Oriha. Overall, I thought that for the day, I looked a-okay. _Click!_ "Master, is everything all right down there?" Katsuragi asked as the music paused.

I smiled as I crossed the street with a crowd of people. "Trust me, Katsuragi. I'm feeling safer now that you're with me." I answered through the microphone attached to one of my headphones.

"Really?" she asked in a romantic curiousity.

"Really, Katsuragi. Look, you're actually a point of interest to me. I'll make sure to take you out to ice cream and all kinds of good stuff. Okay?" I offered her.

"Master... I'd like that." she answered my offer.

I smiled gleefully. "There's a song called Bang It Out on my phone. Make it play for me, please." I requested as I noticed a couple strong men following me, specifically tailing **me**, no coincidence about it. "And don't be afraid to come down with me, I've got some assholes following me."

I walked my way purposefully to a detour in the middle of a park area. I noticed that more of them start to group around me, and I uncloaked Muramasa. "Alright boyos, let's see if you can handle this." I said aloud as I turned 270º and slashed Muramasa horizontally.

Normally, it's just a gust of slicing wind, and kinetic energy, but there was a new element involved in all of this. It was a small burst of red light, humming down in a low vibrational tune. My slash and that light decimated them. I held Muramasa in my hands, and stood normally straight. "Red light... Where did that come from?" I asked aloud until I realized that it was **her**. "Wait, it's you!" I called out.

She landed in front of me, on her feet. She wore a white gi with a white-grey overcoat, and there were no markings of any kind similar to Midasu's and the isides of her coat radiated golden light. Her hair was long and brown, flowing in the wind. Her brown-red irises and her beautiful ovalular eyes caught my attention with her perfect complexion on very light skin, as well as a petite nose and that pearly white smile with pink lips. She giggled to me and hugged me tightly, my arms wrapped around her too. Her chest was at **least** E-cup size, because I could feel them squishing against me as I held her warm and soft body. She was about five feet and ten inches tall, because she was shorter than I was: by three and a half inches. She held my head from the back of my neck and my back in her hands. "I was wondering when you'd come and play with me." she whispered gleefully in my ear. "I was beginning to think you'd forgotten about widdle old me." she sleazed playfully.

We let go of one another and I sheathed Muramasa, and then I smiled at her. "I'm Nathan." I greeted as I leaned in for a kiss.

She held my cheeks in her hands before kissing me long and deep with a big rush to it. Her wings were blazing white and gold light that could be seen miles away. I felt that delicious heat from the emergence of another sekirei overflow me, and somehow warm me up beneath the muscles as well. I only felt that with Akitsu, Midasu and Tsukiumi, but this came with it as well. We stopped kissing and she became all twinkly eyed at me. "I'm Kagayaki, sekirei number 25." she greeted as she smiled excitedly and did a little jumpy dance. "Well, come on! There'll be more of Mikogami's men coming our way." she spurred on as I took out Muramasa and she began to shine with energy.

And more they came. Heavily armed men with mid-tech body armor and heavy weaponry surrounded us, and there were at least a hundred or more of them. I looked at this and smiled, chuckling amusedly. "A hundred or so guys with nothing better to do than pick on a guy and a girl that barely met? You guys suck!" I shouted mockingly at them before Katsuragi landed next to me.

"Master, she's almost here! We have to hurry!" Katsuragi cried out.

I smiled excitedly and beastly. "Then let's dance, girls!" I battle cried as we all darted at our enemy's hired idiots.

In one hand was my blade, and the other, my scabbard. Katsuragi and I were pounding on people, running side by side shoulder to shoulder. I sliced with my sword hand and punched with the hand that held the scabbard; and Katsuragi sweep kicked, screw kicked and leopard struck and uppercutted with my vertical and horizontal and diagonal strikes. We were like a two person juggernaut, gaining power and momentum as we kept going. I smiled to her. "In!" I shouted as we jumped up into the air and I sheathed Muramasa. "And out!" I finished as she and I rocketed to the ground, and we both held the scabbard of Muramasa as the end of it struck the ground and sent the ground bursting and decimating all of them, making them flounder to the air uncontrollably.

I looked to Kagayaki as I prepped my blade for a grass-cutter slash. "In!" I yelled as I felt the wind and gravitational potential energy gather up at my feet. And in one perfect motion I dashed forward and slashed everything vertically, and the red humming light amplified my grass-cutter slash into an ionized tornado of death. Men were screaming and wailing before falling to the ground, most of them already dead, and the rest died from the fall of forty feet, straight down. I smiled and sheathed Muramasa. "Katsuragi, you are **so** getting rewarded for this. Take Kagayaki to the rooftops, you two will resume vigil for anything **else** while I check the train station." I told Katsuragi.

"Yes, master." she said as she jumped up to the top of a building.

Kagayaki smiled and blew me a kiss with her lips and two fingers with a wink. "Anything you say, ashikabi-kun!" she sleazed as she joined Katsuragi on the roof.

I looked back to where I walked over here from and smiled calmly. "Now to get back to where I was going in the first place." I said as I walked away from the scene of the three way overkill dance of light and intense powers.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

I stood there, leaned up against a wall next to the train departure and arrival schedule board, waiting for my guest to arrive. Muramasa was cloaked and my headphones weren't in this time. The sky was tinted orange from the sun's angle in the later afternoon, and there were clouds rolling with the light breeze in the spring sky. I smiled contently and I carressed the hilt of Muramasa at my left hip with my thumb, and I thought to myself, hoping that Alan would hear it, 'I'm doing alright, brother. Muramasa is in good hands.' Then I heard a ring tone from my phone. It was a loop p;ayback of the Final Fantasy victory music when you win a battle. I unplugged my headphones and checked who was calling me on my phone, and sure enough, it was my house number. I slowly slid the answer button across the screen and put the phone to my ear. "Hello?" I greeted questioningly.

"Nathan!" Tsukiumi's voice shouted from my phone as I flinched a bit and put the phone away from my ear. "What the devil ist taking thou so long!? Were you attacked by another sekirei or ran over by a car?! Tell me immediately!" she kept yelling and screaming at me.

I waited a second for her to calm down, then I answered, "Tsukiumi, my guest hasn't arrived yet, and we **were** attacked by a group of strong men in armor, and I winged another sekirei in order to help and be helped."

"Art thou insane?! Thou should have called for more than decent backup than a full body type and a random sekirei!" she roared in response. "Thou should have called for thy true wife!"

I frowned. "What did I tell you about that?"

" 'Don't think that you play favorites'. I'm sorry, Nathan." she apologized.

I smiled and walked to a quieter spot, still relatively close. "Listen, so perhaps I planned something for us tomorrow. Perhaps I planned on seeing a movie, eating at a five star restaurant for dinner, and a little bit of other stuff afterwards." I let her in on the plan.

Even from a phone line, I could tell that she was turning into a living candle, melting under the intense heat of a growing fire. "Art thou speaking truthfully?" she asked in a rather sweet and honeyed sexy voice.

"Does the sun shine?" I retorted to a question with a question.

I could hear her gasp in delight and I could feel her heart begin to glaze and melt for me right then and there. "All day?" she asked.

"All **afternoon**; I have to make you breakfeast in the morning." I replied.

She was silent for a few seconds. "Thou dost know I love thee, right?" she asked.

"I'll be showing how much I agree with that tomorrow." I said as I heard the trains arrive. "I've gotta go, Tsukiumi." I told her. "Bye."

I hung up on her and walked my way over to the train station walkway, in order to meet my guest. 'Minato said that she'd be here by now, so I guess it'd be a good time to meet her. What was her name? Yukari...? I think so, Yukari, yeah.' I pondered to myself as she waved to me. She was wearing a white button up shirt that made her breasts seem to pop out (though I had no idea how that worked, it just seemed to.) with a red tie that had the outline of an upside down cross in white lines on it. At her waist was a brown big belt of some kind that had a metal loop at the center to be the tying point for it, and the belt held a black skirt to her that reached down to about five inches above the knees. She wore black kneesocks that reached up to just a tiny bit above the knees, leaving some of the thigh to be shown. Her skin was a very light color and perfect complexion, and her face had a very similar resemblance to Minato. Her eyes were a dark faded blue color and her hair was a blue tinted black with a little yellow perfect perpendicular lines' shape hairpin in her partially unkeps and yet well styled hair. She waved to me and bounded her way over to me. She was five feet and two inches, very much shorter than me. She looked up at me, smiling. "Hi Nathan! It's been a long time, since my brother invited me over so long ago." she greeted with that 20 year old, rather pleasant and fun voice of hers.

I raised a brow and smiled. "It's been about three months, Yukari. If I could remember your name, I think we can say it's been only so long." I responded.

She giggled and immediately jumped onto my back and clung to it, pressing her breasts you it. "Whatever, big guy. Now gimme a piggy back ride." she demanded.

I rolled my eyes and began to walk with a 103 pound girl on my back, thinking to myself, 'Same old Yukari. Same old Yukari indeed.'

We walked over a few blocks in the direction to our house, and Yukari got off of my back in order to use the restroom of a nearby department store. Waiting for her, I noticed that I still had to give Katsuragi something for all of her help. 'Is there any ice cream or something good over here? I knew I saw— ah, there you are!' I heard myself in my ears. I saw an ice cream vendor and bought a couple cones. Katsuragi quickly jumped down and I handed her a cone. She smiled as bit and actually kissed me, which was weird because she was usually shy. "Thank you." she cried out joyfully with the calming shy tone still in there as she jumped back up with her cone.

I smiled and bought another just in time for Yukari to come out of the bathroom. We walked our way home, and then I told her that there was a motel nearby, and that she could stay there for a while. I walked her there, and then a very pivotal conversation began. "Nathan, can I ask you something?" she asked.

"What is it?" I asked in response while we were walking.

"How are you adjusting to living here, being from halfway across the world and all?" she asked.

"I'm doing fine. Sure, I'm getting used to the wording of everything and the way things work, but yeah. I'm good." I answered. "Your brother keeps me good company, and you're something to look forward to."

We were silent for a few second, walking on. 'I have to admit, I can't just spill everything to her. That's why I'm not letting her stay with me. Not a chance.' I told myself. "You know, you're a sweet guy." she told me. "You've been looking out for Minato, and you're so nice to me."

I smiled a bit. "Well, you know, I've gotta take care of the guy. He's one of my best friends." I told her.

"Well, I'm still happy about you doing it, big guy." she retorted with that cute smile as she slugged my arm, but then she rubbed her hand. "You consider being a bodyguard?"

I chuckled. "I'm a commission artist, not a bodyguard." I answered as we came up to the motel. "Well, here we are. You have my number if you need me, so I'll head back home." I said to her as I began to walk away.

"You said you were a commission artist right?" she asked me, calling out in an implicative way.

I turned back to a blushing Yukari with her hands behing her back, turning left and right back and forth. "Yeah, I am." I told her.

She smiled a bit. "What if I wanted to have a painting or something? Would tomorrow be a good time?" she asked, implying what I subconsciously feared she would.

I began to sweat a bit, and I was flustered with tension. "No, tomorrow I have some stuff to do. But the day after I might be available." I answered.

She closed her eyes and smiled, waving at me cutely. "I can't wait until then. See you in two days." she gave farewell as I waved and walked away.

In my ears, I heard myself muttering, 'Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap!' over and over again.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I was in the bath tub room, sitting in the hot water with a towel on my forehead. I simply sat there with my legs stretched into full relaxation in front of me, and I was trying my best not to even think. Not even that effort could stop the overflow of thoughts coming through my head, calculations and strategies about any and all possibilities that would come up. "Nathan?" I heard Akitsu's voice call out from a slightly opened door. "Can we come in?" she asked.

I smiled. "Please do." I answered as I put all of the negativity aside, and let out a breath of releif as I did so.

Akitsu and Tsukiumi walked into the bath, their bodies covered with black towels and their hair relaxed and let down in their near-nudity. Tsukiumi and Akitsu looked very beautiful to me, and I was always glad just to even see them, let alone be with them. They slowly let their towels down and took a dip into the water with me. 'Alan... I think I might just be in heaven.' I told Alan in my thoughts. Tsukiumi got close to me with her cheeks red like strawberries. Her nipples were soft and a beautiful shade of pink, and they were so perfectly small and hard. Her skin was so soft, especially in the warmth of the water. She looked at me with her lapiz lazuli eyes, gazing into the windows of my soul, and then she asked me, "Who is Alan?"

I looked at her confusedly. "Alan?"

"The one who thou were speaking to at the air last night. I assume **he** gave you Muramasa?" she asked and elaborated her curiousity.

"You refer to Alan a lot. You're usually thinking about him." Akitsu added in.

I listened to them, and began to chuckle. "Akitsu, you keep telling me you aren't telepathic, but you know I'm always thinking about him. You guys are telepaths." I responded digressingly.

Tsukiumi grabbed my arm and raised her voice. "This is serious! Art thou ailed by this 'Alan' that thou must keep his identity from us?" she asked.

My smile melted into a remorseful expression. The light of my eyes became misty and my heart beat slower, and heavier. I was silent and looking down at the reflection in the water. "Since you two are in need of knowing, I'll tell you." I sombered.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

My mother, father and I were standing in front of an open grave with a shiny black closed coffin in preparation to be lowered into the ground. We were all dressed in black formal wear and looking down at the coffin. There were others there too; a minister with a bible, most of our family members and friends of the families. Half of my friends were there as well, and I also saw some U.S Marines in their military formal wear and their hats. Most of the men were well decorated, and I could tell that they liked him just the same way I did. The sky was a blood red and orange mix with the grey and pink clouds draping the heavens for the sunset. The pine and grass mixed in so well with the light of the sun just about to fall. The minister finished reciting the scriptures, and said, "We commit Alan Christopher Felix to the earth, and we ask our heavenly father to keep watch over his soul, wherever he may go. And we ask that he accept him into the holy kingdom. Amen." he announced as they lowered Alan's coffin into the ground and began to cover it with dirt.

The 21 gun salute was loud and smoky as the sun gave way to the night, and the torches around us kept everything lit up for us to find our way back out to the parking lot. I looked down at my brother's grave and began to cry. "I'm sorry Alan. It's all my fault! If I were there... I'm so sorry!" I cried out in an angry sadness as I took out his zweihander from a hiding place and sunk the blade into the ground next to his tombstone before walking away to my waiting family and other guests.


	13. Pleasantry in the morning

The sun was rising on the special day that I had planned for Tsukiumi, and I was up early to meet the day prepared for the long process of cooking that was ahead of me. I woke up next to Akitsu like usual, and kissed her cheek before I walked out of the master bedroom wearing a white t-shirt and my underwear under a bathrobe. 'Okay, Nathan. Today's the day, you gotta make it enjoyable for Tsukiumi. Breakfeast, morning bath. painting, training, lunch and shopping, movie, dinner and then sleep with her.' I ran through in my mind as I entered the kitchen. I got out some eggs, potatoes, bacon, milk, salt and pepper, and all kinds of other stuff. I cracked my knuckles and popped my neck before I took out the stereo wireless remote and put on some Spice Girls music. Moving to the beats and the jam, I quickly and precisely, but also excitedly and energetically got to work on the most epic breakfeast ever. As I was cooking, I was also singing the lyrics loudly and admittedly really badly. Stirring, flipping, mixing, beating, they were all like dances for me,and I keptgoing with the flow as I both did and didn't gain momentum and kept going with my epic masterpeice. Slicing, dicing, it was so much quicker with a knife now that I had gotten much more practiced use with Muramasa. For half an hour I was cooking, making sure to get in every detail until I was absolutely finished. Once I was done, I put all of the meal onto one big tray and the music stopped. "It's time." I said aloud in a naturally deepened funny voice as I carried the tray up the stairs. I hummed a gleeful tune as I made it down the hall and up to Tsukiumi's room.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

"Alan Felix was my older brother. He and I grew up in Strawberry, Arizona together, and he taught me how to fight." I told Akitsu and Tsukiumi in the bath.

Tsukiumi looked at me concernedly. "Why dost your brother haunt you so?" she asked.

"Alan joined the army when I was 16 and he was 18. He and I both had similar abilities, kinda like this." I started to answer as I made my dark sword appear in my right hand. "I have a sword of 'light' similar to this one, but for some reason, I can't summon it. So I use neither one and I just use either my technology or Muramasa. He haunts me because he died when he was just about to turn nineteen."

Akitsu and Tsukiumi were quiet, waiting for me to continue. "He was killed by a falling rock that fell on his collar bone, but he pushed me out of the way. And let me tell you, the boulder was pretty big." I sombered. "Muramasa was one of a set. Mine was Masamune, and his was Muramasa. I considered using both, but it seems wrong."

"Wait, thou art not lying?!" Tsukiumi cried out in surprise. "Two legendary weapons are in thy possession?"

I looked her way, and my mood started to light up. "Well, yeah. A lot of them are. But I have to have them sent here." I answered with a smile.

"Nathan." Akitsu called to me.

I looked to see her scooting and crawling closer to me. We locked eyes and I could see the small baby stars glisten in her eyes, filled with the neverending space of love and understanding. "We're here for you." she said to me in a loving and beautiful voice. "My ice and Tsukiumi's water."

Tsukiumi and Akitsu snuggled up to me, giving eachother the provocative death glare. I noticed this and laughed merrily, almost to the point where it started to hurt. "What's so funny?" they both asked; Tsukiumi shouted and Akitsu icily asked.

I closed my eyes and smiled. "You two remind me of myself and Alan fighting over who gets to practice with our dad. Thanks, I really needed that."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Good morning, my little water goddess." I greeted with a smile as I held the tray of food. "Might I say you look beautiful this morning?"

Tsukiumi yawned and sat up in bed. She wore little more than a silk teddy that fit her skin tight, making her so much more alluring. She smiled to me with her eyes adjusting to the morning light as I put the tray on small prep stands for her to easily eat off of the tray. I smiled gleefully as I listed off, "One omlet with salt and pepper, a side of hasbrowns and bacon peices witha glass of sparkling water and a bowl of orance and strawberry slices. Entree two is a full on belgium waffle with powdered sugar and maple syrup and a tad bit of butter mixed in, and bowl of kiwi slices ready to eat. You'll notice that the silverwear s shined to supreme excellency and I washed the dishes thirty times."

She smiled at me with a raised brow. Her smile was so beautiful, I couldn't help but smile back. "Dost thou feed all your women thusly?" she asked in surprise.

"I've never fed a woman. Well, does buying Katsuragi an ice cream count?" I asked jokingly.

She laughed softly and looked at me appreciatively. "I must say, I am already excited for our special day." she commented as she took a bite of the omlet and made sounds of pleasure as she swallowed. "For you cook so well. What is thine secret?" she asked.

I giggled bashfully and scratched my head, ruffling my hair. "The Spice Girls." I answered.

"What on earth is that? Are you already associating us by such names?" she asked in reply.

"Wha-? No, the Spice Girls are a 1980's music group. I was listening to music while cooking." I cleared up.

She giggled in such a sexy and womanly way, it was just a huge excitement for me. "So thou likest music?" she asked. "Well, that **is** what Midasu and Benitsubasa told me."

I smiled and held Muramasa in my hands, sitting next to her bed, on a chair. "I love music. It's like my kiss with you, it fuels me and excites me." I agreed with her.

"Did Alan?" she asked while eating.

"Yeah, he did. He and I would always do the chores with music on, almost dancing while we did our stuff. Our mom and dad always bought us cd's if we were good and we had the money. It was a lot of fun back up in Strawberry." I answered as I saw her looking at me lustfully. "What?"

She smiled beautifully at me, the air seeming to sweeten and glisten around us. "I can just imagine our children." she bubbled.

My face turned red and I nearly flinched when she said that. 'Kids?! Whoa whoa whoa! Slooohoohoooow down!' I heard myself. "Can we even have kids?" I asked flusteredly. "I thought Akitsu would at least be pregnant by now, but I see nothing."

"Sekireis can only get pregnant if they know that it's what their ashikabis want, and if they haven't fought in over three months." Tsukiumi answered. "At least, that's what my adjuster, Takehito Ayama told me. But he always **was** absent minded."

I looked at her in a puzzled way, my mouth showing that. "Takehito? Miya's dead husband?" I asked.

"Who is Miya?" she asked in response.

"The landlady of Maison Izumo, where my friend Minato is currently living." I answered. "I take it you don't know her, so I suppose we should just move on."

She smiled at me amusedly. "I never took thou for an intellectual." she commented as she ate some more and drank some water.

I smiled confusedly. "Intellectual? How was that intellectual?" I chuckled interrogatively.

"It's the way thou speaks. It sounds intellectual." she answered. "Especially in terms of thy fighting."

I scratched my head in confusion, silently. 'Fightning? I hardly talk about fighting.' I thought to myself, trying to figure out a response. Tsukiumi rolled her eyes when she swallowed another bite. "I know thou never speaks about fighting, but thou art better than most men." she followed up.

"Okay, you guys have to be able to hear my thoughts or something." I bolted amazedly. "How are you always reading me?"

She finished her entree and winked at me, which was especially cute because I never saw it before in her. "Thou art just easy to read." she answered bubbly as she got to work on her second entree.

I blinked in astonishment a few times, and then closed my eyes and cackled merrily. "You and Akitsu are really good at this, aren't you?" I asked in a giggly way.

She swallowed a few bites and then glared at me irritatedly. "Hmph! Obviously I am better at reading thee than she is." she commented. "I am the strongest after all."

"Technically, **I'm** the strongest." I retorted.

She heard me, and began to giggle adorably and humorously. "I **did** take thee for a comedian, though." she told me as she finished brakfeast and I cleared away all of the stuff. "Now come here, I need a third entree." she called to me, making her voice syruppy and sexy.

I grinned at her. "Ah, ah ah. We're doing that in the bath."

I held out my hand to her, and she grabbed it as I pulled her up, dipped her down like a dance, and kissed her deeply. She held me to her as my chest pressed to hers and her wings blazed, illuminating the room more than the sun already was. Delicious heat and electric tingling filled us both as our lips connected, and as our tongues danced the feeling intensified. We stopped kissing and looked into each other's eyes, long and slow. "Tsukiumi, I was hoping we'd get some training done before we bathe." I admitted to her.

She smiled and nodded her head. "Anything for thee." she answered as we kissed again.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, I must warn you, I won't be all too lenient with you." I let her know as I took stance, holding Murmamsa firmly in my hands, digging my feet a little bit into the soil of my back yard.

Water drew up around Tsukiumi, and she scoffed in a cocky way, smiling at me. "Dost thou think it wise not to use both Muramasa and Masamune at the same time, Nathan?"

I popped my neck. "I'm trying to train you, not kill you." I answered. "Besides, I will only use Masamune when I am ready."

The others were watching from the patio as we got ready. "Alright, have at thee!" Tsukiumi battlecried as she hurled her hand forth. "Water Celebration!"

My eyes sharpened and a glint of white-red light blazed like an infinitesimal inferno, as the blue crystal water cascaded at me like a tidal wave, roaring and gaining size and momentum as it flew my way. I sheathed Muramasa and then I heard Alan in my ears. 'Now.' he urged. I released a full-moon slash, dividing the Water Celebration in one half that fell to the ground and the other that sprayed out in a mist above me, making a rainbow as I used one hand and vertically slashed down with heightened force. The wave of kinetic slicing energy missed Tsukiumi, who dodged the attack, but it cut a gash into the ground itself. She looked to me and cast forth a finger. "Water arrows!"

Shapened bolts of water flew towards me, each one going at about 30 miles per hour. I leapt into the air and they crashed violently into the earth where I stood. 'She's quite strong. And she's the second strongest. Imagine what Akitsu could do.' I told myself in my mind as Tsukiumi rocketed my way. "Thou art open! Water Dragon!" she shouted as a serpent dragon made of crystal blue water darted at me.

I smiled and scoffed as I held Muramasa with both hands and red-orange light enveloped and suged around the blade like a corona of a small sun. "I'm never open." I retorted as I swung vertically with heightened force.

A glare of red light conflagrated through the water dragon and the leftover force of it knocked her down to the ground. I landed on my feet, the ground crackling a little bit under me. 'Well, it's good to know that Muramasa could do the same thing. And it's red. That's not half bad.' I concluded to myself as I helped her up to her feet. I smiled gleefully with my eyes closed. "Good try though." I told her as she flicked my forhead, making my blink open in befuddlement.

She smiled at me irritatedly. "You were going easy on me." she complained.

"It's **training**, not super smash brothers." I argued. "I'm going to go easy on you, even if you're number nine."

"And you say you're the strongest." Benitsubasa teased from the patio.

Tsukiumi whipped her head to the side and glared at Benitsubasa. "I take that as a challenge, cur!" she barked.

Benitsubasa walked onto the dirt arena of the backyard and declared, "It is, number 9!"

Tsukiumi and Benitsubasa were giving each other the death glare, and I could swear that Muramasa began to shimmer a little bit. 'Ugh, though I like to see a girl fight, this isn't the time.' I thought to myself. Tsukiumi leapt back and Benitsubasa did as well. I sharpened focus, for they were going to fight. Muramasa shimmered with the light of dusk again and as water drew up around Tsukiumi and the air burned a blood red color around Benitsubasa, I slashed down with all of the force in my two hands. A circle energy slice of red-orange light carved into the ground and flashed as it burst out between them. Dust and light clouded their vision, so it was the perfect opprotunity for me to strike and teach them a lesson. I looked over to Akitsu, and as we signalled one another with our faces, she jumped over and landed gracefully next to me. "Ready?" I asked.

"When you are, master." she answered as we dashed forward at them.

And it began. As we made it between them, we locked hands with one another. That spot, where we held our hands, was the center of our rotation; and we spun around that. In her free hand, she was unleashing ionized perma frost upon them in a giant wave; and in mine I was clutching to Muramasa and unleashing the blood light energy from the blade. We spun faster and faster until I tossed her upwards and skewered the ground, making it light up and burn with energy upon Tsukiumi and Benitsubasa. Before Akitsu landed, I leapt to the sky and sheathed Muramasa. From the air, I saw the giant array of icicles and miniature glaciers burst up with a contained dome blizzard as Akitsu leapt up to meet me in mid-air. I smiled to her and kissed her, her wings blazing out in readiness for an incantation. 'Oriha could do that thing, I assume Akitsu can too.' I summarized in my head as I smiled to her. "Together." I directed to her warmly as Murmasa changed shape. The hilt was still red metal, bit green fabric gave way to the diamond grip patterns this time, and glowing red eyes adorned the tengu face that was on the pommel/guard are of the sword, and it was as big as my hand. The tengu with great sharp fangs gave way to a thicker and doubly sharper red tinted steel blade. The butt of Muramasa was given a golden ring with tiny indent holes carved unto it. Akitsu closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Ice of my pact, freeze all my ashikabi's fears!" she chanted as we rocketed down to the ground. The blizzard begame much larger and the ice mixed in with the heavy energy of Muramasa's bloodlight, almost destroying the entirety of my back yard. And my back yrad was a twelve acre grass and garden area with a dirt circle that took up about ten or twelve yards in diameter. In the middle of it, Tsukiumi and Benitsubasa were battered up and on their asses, panting and holding especially bruised areas in their arms or ribs. Muramasa returned to its normal red glaive form, and I put it on a hilt holder on my belt. "You two are going to clean this up and water my plants as punishment for fighting." I told them. "Tsukiumi can come and return to our daily schedule when she-" I kept going as Akitsu looked to me weakly.

"Nathan, I am a little weak." she sputtered as she bgan to wobble and I caught her.

"Whoa whoa, okay... okay." I gasped as I walked her into the house and laid her down on the couch. "Okay, listen to me, you'll be fine, just take a nap and rest for a few hours. That helps me, it's bound to help you." I ordered softly and worriedly.

She fells asleep soundly and kissed the palm of my hand, assuring me that it'll be alright. "Kagayaki, Midasu." I called out.

They both stood to my attention. "Whichever one of you has healing powers, use them to the best of your ability for her." I ordered.

"Yes, Nathan." Kagayaki agreed as I walked away, clutching Muramasa worriedly in my hand.

Then, my phone rang the So Demanding loop tone, and I pulled it out to see Yukari Sahashi as the contact name and a picture of her digging a big kiss into my cheek in appreciation and I was holding a birthday cake and closing my eyes with squishy face. I smiled at this and answered my phone. "Yukari, hey." I greeted.

"Hey, handsome!" she greeted in my ear.

I chuckled. "So now that's my name?" I asked.

"Well, 'big guy' gets overused a little bit, don't you think?" she argued in such a giggly way. "I mean, we're not in a porno or anything."

"Uh, I doubt that has any relevance, but I get what you're saying." I agreed with her, trying to get off of the strange turn of subject.

"Oh, whatever. So, are you sure you can't paint something for me?" she tried to bring up.

"Yes, I'm sure. Tomorrow, I'll try, but perhaps today we might be able to hang by the beach or something. No promises though." I answered.

"No promises? On seeing me in a swimsuit?" she urged, questioning my logic.

I was silent, and considering that. "If Minato comes with you." I answered.

"Good enough handsome! I'll see you when you and Minato get there." she replied in appreciative joy.

"Alright, I'll see you then. Bye." I said.

"Love you!" she gave faewell as she hung up and I did as well.

Directly after that, I heard a knock on the door. "Nathan?" Musubi's voice called out in her usual happy way.

I opened the door to find Musubi, and Kusano holding her hand, standing on my porch. "Hi!" she greeted with that sparkle in her eyes.

Kusano simply looked up at me, and I just then realized that I had never even met her. I smiled to Musubi and let her in. "Hi, Musubi." I greeted. "How's Minato doing? I haven't seen him in two days."

"He's doing good, he's at school right now." she replied.

I chuckled in delight. "Good. He needs people like you to keep him in good spirits." I said as I saw Kusano clutching to Musubi.

Musubi gestured to me. "Oh, Ku, this is Nathan. He helped Minato and I get to you in the arboretum." she introduced.

Upon hearing that, she lit up and I got down to her level, smiling warmly; and she hugged me. "Another big brother!" she cried out in a childishly cute way.

I smiled and we let go of one another. "Has your big brother been taking care of you?" I asked her.

She nodded. "Uh huh!"

"That's great." I replied as I just remembered. "Oh, right. When Minato gets back, tell him that we're going to the beach with my newest sekirei and his sister." I let Musubi know.

She smiled, and her eyes twinkled more. "Can we train again? Pleease?" she begged.

'In one ear and out the other, huh?' I thought to myself. "I'd love to, but I actually have a whole day planned for Tsukiumi. Maybe we can train at the beach." I offered.

Musubi did this little dance of excitement. "Yay!" she cried out. "Thanks, Nathan!"

"Nathan!" Tsukiumi called out. "Let us resume the day."

I smiled. "See you two later." I departed to them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

"I hope thou art not angry at me for the scrap outside." Tskiumi apologized as the tub filled with hot water and steam rose. "And for what hath happened to Akitsu."

I carressed her cheek softly and looked into hear oceanic eyes. "Kagayaki is going to heal her, and she'll be alright, I promise you. Everything is alright." I assured her.

She blushed red at my touch, for in our nudity, we could easily get into the mood. I smiled gleefully. "We can if you want. I already told you I wouldn't defile you." I assured her, offering her what she wanted based off of reading her face.

She smiled at me, chuckling with delight. "And thou thinkest **I'm **telepathic?" she asked as we began to kiss.

Kissing became tongue wrestling and holding tightly and closely to one another. Our tongues danced and swirled in her mouth, elegantly and smoothly as our bodies began to heat up and my skin began to bump all over with the tingling pleasure that came from my contact with the water sekirei. Her mouth was so delicious and pleasurable, I couldn't dare to resist her or the notion of going deeper. She held my shoulder and my hair in her hands as her breasts pressed to my chest and our reproductive organs rubbed up against each other, making her gasp in sharp delight. "Tsukiumi—." I gasped to her.

"—Do what thou want to me. I demand thee!" she cried out hungrily.

We looked into each others eyes long and deep. My heart was pounding in my ears, and my dick was throbbing in excitement more so than my heart was. 'She wants me, I know it.' I thought to myself as she smiled and blushed a rosy red. "Thou can do what thou wantest to me, Nathan." she offered to me sweetly. "I will do anything you want."

I smiled and kissed her deeply, rubbing and massaging her breasts while swirling our tongues together. We pulled out of the kiss slightly, and I whispered, "Your breasts are so perfect and creamy, my angel." as I began to kiss her soft skin and lick and love my way down her body until I came to her breasts.

"Suck me, Nathan! Nurse off of thy wife!" she demanded of me.

I wanted to respond in my usual correcting way when she talks about being my wife, but I realized that she and I are technically in that level of commitment. So I just made love to her more, giving her what she wanted. Each thrust, each gesture of action and each orgasm was like its own individual arc of paradise. I almost wanted it to go on forever. When we were done, we were lying in the water, next to one another, panting and squirming for air. Then she and I looked at one another, and held hands tightly. I smiled warmly and smugly, with a flash of a wink. "I know, I know. I was fantastic." I bragged humorously.

She giggled and snuggled up to me. "Oh Nathan, thou art such a comedian." she snobbed as she drenched me with crystal water.

My eyes were tightly shut as I opened them, giggling with insane love for her temperamental nature. "Oh my god, I love you so much!" I laughed out as I kissed her cheek in a squishy and cheesy way.

"Dost thou really... mean that?" she asked, as if I just set off her nuclear bomb of love.

I smiled and licked her nipples playfully. "I think that you could've figured it out when I kissed you in my front yard." I answered. "And when I purposely backed off from you on the rooftop."

She made sounds of pleasure as I licked her. "But this isn't a competition, Tsukiumi, this is a family. I desperately need one." I told her as I rested my head on her breasts.

She kissed my head and held it to her. "Thou art a great man, Nathan. I shall do anything for thee." she promised.

Upon hearing that, I smiled in a bubbly way and kissed her breast. "Then maybe you'll be ready for round two in your room after..." I tapired off as my eyes widened. "Oh crap, the beach."

"Oh, yes, Minato and his sister!" Tsukiumi scuttled as we got up to our feet and dried off and got into our clothes as fast as we could. "Wouldst thou be wearing thy armor as transportation?"

"No, I'll try a mode of transport I haven't thought of using yet." I answered. "You can leap your way around and tail us, I'll be at Yukari's, picking her up at the place she's at."

We exchanged smiles as she leapt out of the house. I quickly backtracked and kissed Akitsu's forehead. Kagayaki's lips pressed to my cheek as she said, "She'll be awake by tomorrow morning."

I smiled in a satisfied way, thankful for her well being. "Good, very good." I replied as I walked into the front yard slowly. "Alright, Alan. Let's see if this still works." I said to an imaginary invisible Alan as I released Muramasa's true form and got on one knee, stabbing the ground.

Seconds later, I was in front of Yukari's motel with afterburns of energy glowing on my clothes like the glisten of golden firelit powder. I stood up and returned Muramasa to its blood-sword form and placed it along my belt waist. "Yukari! Come on, baby girl! Beach time!" I called out as I knocked on her door.


	14. Fun Time

"Quite frankly, I don't plan on staying much longer." I said as I sat on mine and Tsukiumi's beach towell.

Tsukiumi was in a white and blue bikini with the sekirei symbol and a number 9 on the left breast, and I wore black swim trunks. Tsukiumi's hair was let down in that long and grand way that it usually was, but this time it also complimented everything with her ensemble and her peachy skin and the perfection of her body. She looked over to me, in a seated position with one leg crossed sexily over the other, her face covered in concern. "Why is that, Nathan?" she asked.

I looked up to the sky, which was tinted orange in the late afternoon. "My mind is just swirling with all kinds of badness, and it's not much help being here. I think we aren't only in friendly company." I surmised as I began to get wary of our surroundings.

Tsukiumi looked into my eyes with her lapiz lazuli ones, smiling and holding my hand tightly. "Thou art fine, Nathan. I am here with thee." she assured. "And 'tis a beautiful day, is it not?" she asked.

"Yeah, it sure is." I agreed with a smile as I kissed her hand. "You're the cause of its beauty."

She blushed a deep red and looked away. "Oh stop, thou art embarrassing me." she wiled as I stood on my feet.

"I'm going to use the restroom." I told her as I walked my way to a little restroom building that was about half a story tall and big enough to fit at least 30 people in each gender of restroom.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

I was sitting in the front yard's lawnchair, and I held Muramasa in my hands. The sun was barely in the middle of rising, and the air was crisp and fresh with the smell of moist life and the awakening of plants, and the overpowering aroma of fresh due filled my nostrils. I smiled and took a deep breath. "The sweet smell of life." I sighed with my outward breath laced with satisfaction.

Then she sat in the chair next to me. The woman in the revealing red-violet outfit that was heavy in the cleavage reveal, and the high heels that complimented the ensemble altogether. I smiled upon noticing her, but said nothing to her. She was like a majestic creature or a daydream, with ebony hair that flowed in the sweet wind and beautiful lips touched by the red of expensive lipstic. Her eyes almost beamed out 'carefree' and 'going with the wind'. I simply sat there and silently gushed over her, taking small drinks of my orange mango soda. "How come you never talk to me?" I heard a soft and beautiful voice ask me from where the woman was sitting.

I was almost completely thrown off by her sudden questioning. 'Her? Talking to me? I **must** be crazy, we haven't ever spoken.' I thought to myself. "Well, I sorta thought you were just a pleasant daydream." I blurted out with a nervous giggle.

We looked over to one another, and gave no expression for a seemingly eternal timeframe. My heart was thrashing in my chest, and I could hear it. 'Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut the hell up.' I scolded myself as my heart stopped making all of the thrashing in my eardrums.. Then she smiled to me gently and sweetly. "A daydream?" she asked.

I blushed a bit and smiled to beautiful woman right next to me. "Well, you know, 'daydream', 'angel', the same thing... kinda, heh heh." I bubbled as I blushed more.

She smiled and giggled in the most godly beautiful way I've ever heard. 'Oh my god, she's so beautiful. Who is this woman?' I pondered to myself as I became nearly hypnotized by her gaze. "Aren't **you** just a sweetheart?" she asked me, complimenting me at the same time.

I smiled and closed my eyes a bit. "Y-y-yeah, I just um... ubluh..." I bubbled bashfully as she began to laugh.

Hearing her laugh was like having my very soul steam up with that tickle of joy and satisfaction. It was almost like I was falling for her, which didn't make sense because I've been with Akitsu all this time. 'Am I... No, I can't be. We hardly started talking.' I said to my mind. 'It's just not possible.' She let out a breath of calming relief, and said, "You know, you're awfully nice."

"Thanks." I replied to her.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Nathan~!" I heard Yukari cry out as the flashback daydream broke and I was tackled to the ground.

I was befuddled and blinking in a confusedly strobing way. 'Was I just... And did I hear Yukari?' I asked myself as I saw her. She was smiling and laughing, wearing a black bikini and almost no makeup. But she was looking extra beautiful today, and I smiled and said, "Oy... Yes, Yukari?"

She continued to smile and be in that Yukari state of mind as she replied, "Actually, I just wanted you to catch me before I fell on my face. Thanks, baby."

'Did she just call me...?' I asked myself as she continued on with, "Oh, yeah. So, what say you and blondie play volleyball with me and Minato when he gets changed into his-".

I was hardly paying attention. She looked so beautiful, so young and so energetic. The sun, sand, wind and sky all complimented her looks, similar to the beachtime allure of Tsukiumi's beautiful, and absolutely-, "**Nathan and I accept thy challenge**!" her voice boomed in behind me as my body jumped from sudden startlement and I went to the bathroom all over myself.

"Yes, exactly—ah!" I agreed out of nowhere as Tsukiumi's body flapped onto my arm as she held onto it with her strong and powerful, yet ladylike and soft womanly arms. "We shall take your challenge." I finished saying as she looked at me, her eyes blazing with the flame of comptetitive excitement.

"If thou shalt not be up to the challenge, I shall break thy limbs and rebuild thee to be stronger and more masculine." she ordered as I saw something begin to build up inside of Yukari.

This beast was one of anger, jealousy, and that feeling of a prize being snatched away from you as soon as you have it in your grasp. A darkness sprouted out and started to become an inferno of shade and purest anger. Then it all burst like a supernova when she stomped her foot and pointed at Tsukiumi's face. She growled and roared, "Nathan is **my **man, you crazy bimbo!" like an angry lioness at the challenger's arena in an old roman movie.

I did little more than blink and hear my blood cells rush away from the front of my body in order to avoid inexorable death and ultimate punishment. 'Gentlemen, this is where I shall die a painful, miserable death. I'll miss you.' I thought to myself and my friends as I heard Tsukiumi bark out, "What sophistry is this?! Nathan Felix belongs to **me**!" as they began to have the ultimate death stare contest.

Lightning began to flare and spark between their eyes, the sand should have turned into fire and brimstone beneath their feet. Muscles were growing in their limbs for a fight, and I could feel a change in the moisture as Tsukiumi became angrier and angrier. That set off the scary red flag, and I felt Muramasa's handle materialize as I held it tightly. The full Muramasa materialized seconds later, and I almost unsheathed the blade until I heard Minato call out, "Nathan, guys, I'm ready to come on out now!"

Tensions relieved and all hell barely didn't break loose, as I put Muramasa away and the girls barely didn't kill one another. I saw Minato Sahashi come out of the changing room in a pair of dark colored patternless swim trunks, standing with idle confidence in his physique. Musubi walked her way over to him and began to socialize in that cute way that Musubi always did. Upon my witnessing this, I began to laugh hysterically, almost to the point of crying and wetting myself again. I grabbed Minato and gave a man hug to him and shouted out, "Oh thank christ! Minato, we have been waiting to give out the epic competition!"

Minato and Musubi looked at me confusedly. " 'Competition'?" they asked simotaneously.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, and the finals have. Begun!" I announced as popped my neck and knuckles.

Minato and I stood out of the sidelines of a rectangle volleyball court that we drew in the sand with a stick, with the court having a net that was standard issue. Tsukiumi and Yukari were on either side of the net, and Yukari held the ball. Tensions were extremely high, and I could feel the power of what they wanted and how they were to get and obtain their prize. "One must ask themself! Who can make the vic-tory!? Who can shove it, and who shall take it?" I called out, stirring up excitement. "All of this will be answered, now!"

Minato looked my way nervously and almost in a frightened way. "The finals were ten minutes ago." he told me. "And this next point will decide."

I grinned, humored and excited for the epic final battle between the women laid out before me. "Well, c'mon!" I instigated.

Yukari smiled, competitively and sneeringly. "Good luck, you'll need it." she wished condescendingly.

Tsukiumi smiled back. "Thou shalt need it more." she remarked as the ball was served.

It was like watching Bruce Lee and Neo from the Matrix playing tennis with their hands and feet only. The ball flew up and around, spiking with speed and power with each set and strike. I could tell that Tsukiumi's stamina would have no problem i this, but I was really surprised by the fact that Yukari was still going and going in this. I called out among the grunts, shifting of sand grains, muscle strains and smacks of flesh and bone against leather-plastic material and warm air in spherical form, "Who will make, the epic defeat? Can she defy Christ one more time? Is the juice, worth the squeeze? Is the hair, worth the shave? Does the jew, have the fro?!"

I could instantly see Tsukiumi's impending victory about to rise upon Yukari, like an angry and violent red sun. She was in mid-air, just about to strike the ball down upon the sand with a kick of power. The kick itself was fueled by superhuman strength mixed in with dense bone and momentum of a twin rotation 720 degree flip/rotation maneuver. "And the answer is!" I shouted as Tsukiumi spiked the ball.

The victory was followed by my shout, "No! The juice was **not**, worth, the squeeze!"

Tsukiumi and I walked home that night, with Muramasa at my hip, and my other change of clothes working well with the wind. I wore a short sleeved button up white cotton t-shiet with no undershirt, the shirt itself was open. Along with that was a mix of sandals and black cotton shorts and a casual leather belt. Tsukiumi was in her usual Sekirei combat clothing that was both combat formal and casual. We held hands as we walked slowly, relaxed and unhurried by anything like a schedule. I randomly decided to smile as we crossed over to another block and I said, "That was amazingly entertaining, Tsukiumi."

"What was?" she asked curiously.

"Your epic victory today at the beach. I loved everything about it, you were so powerful and so energetic to get the good stuff into gear." I answered and explained to her. "I knew you'd win."

She snuggled closer to me as we kept walking home. Her chest pressed to my arm as her arms wrapped around my one arm. "Of course I won, thou simpleton. You belong to us sekireis, your family, not-" she began before I noticed it.

"Did you say 'you'?" I interrupted her curiously.

She blinked in alarmed confusion. "I do not know what thou meanest by this! I never said that word to you-"

I smiled and giggled humorously. "You did it again, oh my goodness!" I commented. "You're starting to relax when you talk-!" I kept going as she pinched my ear harder than anything or anyone ever has. "Ow owowowowowowowowowowowowowowowowowowowowowow!" I cried out.

"Tell anyone else about this, and thou shalt feel my wrath!" she screamed angrily.

I crunched my eyelids closed. "Yes ma'am! I'm sorry!" I cried out as she kissed my lips deeply.

Our tongues rolled and danced as her wings blazed and shone behind her, and thankfully nobody even noticed us. Delicious heat overflowed us both as I felt my humanly instincts begin to ultimately take over as I held her closed and kissed deeper with her and felt her up. She was so delicious, and so perfect for turning me on and alluring me into this state of affairs. We stopped kissing after awhile and looked into each other's eyes. A line string of saliva broke bewteen our lips as we seperated, and we both giggled as we saw it. "Tsukiumi, why are you so beautiful?" I asked her as my cheeks started to pink up.

She smiled lovingly as she pointed a finger at me and my head was doused in crystal blue water, leaving my poorly combed hair in an even messier form of a dripping mop than it already could have been, and my face dripping wet. She giggled in such a beautiful way, the world seeming to shift and revolve around her volupture and the untasteable liquer of her radiance as she answered, "Because I am in so in love with thee."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

We were in our bedroom half an hour later, and she was in the master bathroom changing into a more comfortable ensemble. I was in nothing more than a leopard skin patterned speedo underwear, sitting on our bed with my hands pressed particularly shallow into the sheets and mattress. I looked over to the master bathroom and called out, "You know I'm not gonna really care about a lingerie, we can just do nudity!"

The door was closed, and I couldn't see anything but the bathroom LED light casting shadows from Tsukiumi's feet where she was standing and moving. My mind was starting to race and produce images and snippets of scenarios af of what she would wear and do. I saw a sexy kitty Tsukiumi with pink kitty ears, a leash and a tail that was also an anal plug that vibrated in her. Then came the image of a sexy nurse Tsukiumi with blood red high heels and white fishnet stockings, and red glasses that complimented her breasts almost as much as the opened up bra exposing uniform already would have. For christ's sake, I saw her in a sexy **Pikachu** lingerie that worked like the sexy kitty one, and all of these images were exciting me; each one more stimulating than the last. "Oh stop being so impatient, love!" she groaned as the door opened and the light turned off, dashing my images of crazy roleplays away into nothing but funny looking pixie dust and broken light from a dream.

She was in a black leather lingerie with a torso bra that barely was able to hold her bodacious boobs inside of it, a garter belt that did as much as turn me on more, and latex black boot stockings and open crotch and open ass fabric garment from the leggings. In her hand was a lash-o-tails whip made of dark brown leather, and in the other was a pair of black fuzzy handcuffs. Looking at the perfect epic combination ensemble lingerie, my nose began to bleed like crazy. 'N-no freaking way! Holy crap!' I thought to myself as I forced the bloodflow in my nose to stop. Tsukiumi smiled eagerly and victoriously, showing a blaze of excitement in her sapphire eyes and a hunger for action in her pearly white sexy smile. "I could tell thou wouldst absolutely love this." she announced to me smugly.

I didn't even think to use words in order to translate my desire and absolute starvation for the water sekirei, I just began to lavish and kiss her deeply. My fingers gripped deep into her ample flesh and my body heat began to rise as something else on my began to rise with twice the speed and twice the power. She was moaning in my mouth in such a way that said , 'Yes, now give me more, I command you!' I became instantly violent and excited as I tore off the torso bra with bloodlight in my fingers before I extinguished them. I pressed my lips to hers as I danced with her tongue more and I began to use my fingers to play with her vagina. She moaned loudly in my mouth as she began to hungrily move our bodies to squish one another. She began to rub herself to me up and down as I fingered her deeper and deeper with my four fingers. She pulled her mouth away from mine and closed her eyes before crying out in joy, moaning in a pleased way so loudly. I smiled to her, and said, "I knew you'd love it!"

We began to hump, play, finger, jerk, and all of the fun stuff until I completely fell asleep that night.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, I was on one knee in front of the couch where Akitsu was sleeping like an icy, beautiful baby; I was still and motionless, not daring to disturb the goddess's slumber. Then she began to part her eyelids and open her eyes, exposing them to me slowly and tiredly. They were misty from so much sleep and she was groaning tiredly and yawning. I smiled and kissed her softly. Worry and stress that could kill a thousand people was lifted off of my psyche and my body muscles began to relax and energize. "Good morning sunshine, I missed you." I greeted as I got on the couch and snuggled with her.

She smiled softly and kissed my forehead. "Now make me food." she humored me as we began to play and kiss softly and lovingly. It was then that I discovered it for the first time of what would be a great **million** times. Akitsu and I are perfect for one another, and although my love shall be spread among many, she will be the ice queen. She will be my wife.

"I love you, Akitsu." I told her as I kissed her breast and nuzzled my head onto it. "I always will."

She rubbed my hair with her fingers, and she replied, "I love you too, Nathan."

I smiled and held her, cuddling tightly to my fiancee. "Akitsu, I need you to do something for me... Suppose that I want to think of my children with you." I requested her. "Could you tell me what you'd like?"

She was quiet, but yet her breathing and pulsing was deafening. "I would like... Three children, Nathan." she admitted to me in that icebreaking way she always does. "And I'd like to have them be like you."

I giggled. "I wanted one to be more so like you." I admitted to her. "You're amazing, Akitsu, and our children would be doubly so." I complimented.

She immediately began to hold me extremely tightly, almost desperate for my touch in order to save her from suffocating from some kind of withdrawl. "N-Nathan-n...! I can't hold myself anym-m-!" she began to uncontrollably whimper in sexual hunger as I immediately detected this and suckled her breast like a hungry baby.

I licked her nipples and massaged her breasts with my hands for a few minutes, pleasing her to the best of my ability. Then I began to smile as I got my pants and underwear off. "Let me try something, you'll love this." I requested to her as I positioned myself to where my dick was between her breasts and partially going to her mouth.

She began to suck on my tip, hungrier and hungrier as her breasts squished it and jerked it like two big creamy melons of goodness. I felt my ownmuscles begin to tighten as I had an orgasm inside of her mouth. She moaned in joy as she drank me down like a fountain, and she looked up at me with her happy tone of the eyes, and sweat coming from her straw colored hair and forehead. I licked my lips as I jerked more of my juice onto her face and breasts, and I looked down upon my living dream come true, my popsicle. My Akitsu. I saw her, completely submissive and almost starving for me, not in any way against my love juice all upon her. I smiled as I saw her sexy and hungry twinkle of the eyes reflecting the sunlight, and I told her, "If you'd like more, all you'd need to do is ask, my angel."

She smiled in such a small tinted way. "Anything for my ashikabi." she answered as she closed her eyes and pursed her lips softly for me.

That morning with Akitsu was one of the most pleasant one I have had with her up to date.


	15. Push

It started out as a normal afternoon in my line of work, like the last few days have. I had put on the finishing touches of a pianting while finishing up the epic montage dance movements of the swipes, tones and touches on the painting. The sun was shining extra transluscently through my windows and skylight, and the sky was clear and blazing blue with white light; along with the music being a Trap Remix of the Alvin Risk Skrillex song called Roughneck. I finished the commission breathing tiredly and a little more heavily, my arms and fingers a little tired and tingly as well. Looking at my finished masterpeice, I announced, " Alright, it's all done, Kagayaki."

Kagayaki was behind the canvas stand, sitting on a rosewood glazed sitting stool in the standard feminine intellectual sitting posture, looking to my window with her long, silky umber hair flown down upon her shoulders, back and chest. I could almost feel her calmness affecting my body, slowing down the exhaust of energy and making my skin begin to soften momentarily before bumping back up with a tingly electric sensation. 'She's the light sekirei, right? Wonder how she is; I haven't hardly acknowledged her since I had Akitsu healed from overextension. Maybe I should-' I was pondering to myself before she shifted her fiery brown eyes to me, and smiled with a breath of relief. "Finally." she commented to me as she walked over to me. "I'm not used to staying so still in that position while your American music is playing so wildly."

I looked up at her as I stood up to my feet and smirked at my sekirei. "Hey, just because it's an epic Trap Remix doesn't mean you can harsh on it, Kagayaki." I argued humorously as we both looked upon my work. "Whaddya think, should we hang it on the wall or something?" I asked her opinion.

It was just a pure greyscale acryllic painting of Kagayaki looking at the window in the posture that she was seated in. I made sure that it was high key and that I got each individual contrast point and nook and cranny of all lighting and shading detail. Even in greyscale, she looked so truly beautiful with her long hair and that soft, thin and partially reflective bathrobe that she wore for the portrait. But even something as small as that was no less than a true masterpeice, even if it was just a singular portrait. I smiled, showing teeth. "Well, we might as well hang it up, you did pay for it." I kept going as she kissed my cheek.

She proceeded to giggle a bit, in a cute and devilishly thankful way before holding my arm, pressing her bodacious breasts to me. "It's perfect. Well worth my money, Ashikabi-kun." she answered as we began to simply look around at the surroundings.

Nobody was there with us, the room was completely empty of any and all life aside from the two of us. We then gazed upon eachother and smiled in a devious and provocative way. We exchanged no words before I kissed her deeply and slowly began to take off her bathrobe. She and I were making noises into each other's mouths, and then she pulled out of the kiss before smiling and licking her lips. "It's very rude to keep a girl waiting." she told me.

I took off my clothing and put my hand upon her cheek and the side of her neck. Kagayaki was so beautiful, it was almost alluring and clouding my mind. Her breasts were so soft and quite exquisite to the touch, and so creamy and a little bit on the big side. She had smooth skin, softer than any and all fabric in the world. She closed her eyes and her body began to blush a bright pink as she kissed my hand. "I love you, Cable." she admitted to me.

I smiled and leaned in for a kiss. "I'm not in my armor. My name's Nathan." I corrected as I kissed her again, and my other hand held her at the butt to hold her close to me.

Her hand came upon my shoulder and the other began to jerk me in our kissing. That in itself already excited me much more. I began to groan in pleasure as I kissed her deeper, devouring her pleasure with every dance and wrestle of our tongues. She tasted to good, invigorating me on and on as she jerked me harder and faster progressively. We continued on and on until my muscles began to tighten to an extreme degree and I had my orgasm on her hand. We were breathing a little heavily and she smiled at me. "It's **very** rude to make a girl wait." she said to me as she licked her hand clean.

'I'm probably gonna die because of this strange harem.' I thought to myself as I began to smile nervously. Then I heard Akitsu's voice say, "Minato and Seo Kaoru are here to see you." in her usual monotone voice tapir.

I swiftly re-clothed myself and looked over to Akitsu, smiling warmly and softly. "Thanks, Akitsu. I assume that their sekireis are here too?" I asked in response as Kagayaki got back into her bathrobe and I began to walk out of the room with them.

She nodded silently in affirmation and I kissed her forehead. "Do me a favor and tell Katsuragi that her commission is up next, and that I need her to guard the armory." I directed to her as I smiled and looked into her eyes. "You, Tsukiumi and the others aside from her can join the conversation. Or better yet, she can use holo projection to join as well."

Her eyes glinted with both pleasantry and annoyance. "Of course, master-"

"Nathan." I corrected with a chuckle. "You're not in a French maid outfit, you don't have to call me Master."

"Okay, Nathan." she affirmed as she walked down a turn in the halls and I walked into the living room to find Minato and Seo in there.

Accompanying them were the twin lightning sekireis, Hibiki and Hikari, and the others, Musubi and Kusano. They were both a combination of casually and grim mooded, as if something really bad was happening around us. And the only relief came from my home, or just me in general. I widened my eyes a little bit and I felt Oriha hand me Muramasa upon walking in with the others. I held Muramasa at the scabbard and I asked, "What's new?"

They looked over to me, and Minato asked me, "Haven't you heard?"

"Heard what? If it's a news thing, I've been off of my phone, so I don't know." I responded as Seo tossed me his cell phone and I caught it.

'What's up with this business? I better not be in any form of-' I said to myself in my mind as I saw a very disturbing e-mail on screen. From Hiroto Minaka himself. It read: "This city shall serve as a stage for an epic of the century, a battle of the ages. Right now, 108 sekireis are in the city, prepared for a clash unlike any other. Martial Law shall be instituted to the public, and as for my Ashikabis out there, be ready!"

'...trouble.' I finished in my mind as I tossed it back to him. I was absolutely silent, trying to comprehend what that goofy man in glasses authorized. I knew then and there that the family I had just built, Akitsu, and even my two friends, one of them my best, was now in danger along with me in this battle of 'gods'. Minato was deeply connected to Musubi, I could see it, as well as Kusano's obvious desire of living happily ever after with Minato. Looking at him, I could easily tell that unless he had a good position of strength that I would inevitably have to provide for him, he would crumble and recede into himself, slowly leading to insanity and loss of sociability. Seo looked poor enough, but he was also strong enough to do what needed to be done when necessary. When he'd be needed, Hibiki and Hikari would also have the firepower to go with his confidence in himself. Looking at all of this, I did little more than pop my knuckles loudly, with a discomfident smirk on my lips. "Well, this is...delightful." I said to them aloud as I also popped my neck.

"We were hoping that you could let us know if you were going to be with us or not." Seo admitted to us.

'What? Is he serious?' I asked myself. "I thought it was obvious, I wouldn't fight you guys." I told them. "What made you doubt me?"

"Technically it was just Seo." Minato spoke up. "I'm not gonna believe you'd fight us, even in the Sekirei Plan."

"My only concern in the Sekirei Plan is that my sekireis and I survive, and that yours do as well. Anyone who interferes shall die an inexorable death." I answered him. "So, it makes sense that Seo would be weary. Especially because of-" I was continuing before I was interrupted.

"- Art thou going to say Muramasa?" Tsukiumi asked.

I looked to her, turning myself a little. "Yes, I was." I answered.

"Why? What difference in trust does Muramasa mean for this?" she interrogatively argued.

"Muramasa is a legend, an ultimate kami-no-ken. Well, one of them. Someone like me with a whole set of them is someone bound to be untrustwor...thy..." I slowly finished saying before I began to notice something outside of my house.

The feeling was more of a presence based sensation, like when you know people in a mass are coming for you. I unsheathed Muramasa and bloodlight began to ignite upon the blade. "Someone is here. I'm going to need all the help that I can get from you." I announced as I walked out of my front door to find something quite strange.

A large group of MBI heavily armored troops were in front of my house and in my yard, armed to the teeth anf fortified with war vehicles. I sneered as I shouted,"Fuck off!"

They didn't even blink before a sargeant that was in charge handed me a big black box wrapped in silver and white ribbon material in a bow, and upon that delivery, they all left. I held the big box in confusion and utter idiocy, not even angry about the fact that it just happened out of nowhere. '...What the hell just happened to me?' I thought to myself as I looked on the box to find a tag that had Minaka's name on it. "I got...a present? From Minaka." I said aloud.

Akitsu walked over to my side. "Do you know what it is?" she asked me in concern.

"No, I don't. And quite frankly, I'm not going to open it yet." I answered in a resumed casual tone. "Someone take this box and set it on my bed, I'm going to do some exploring with my things."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hmm... Let me see here..." I said aloud to myself as I began to search in a big room full of boxes.

I tore open a wooden crate and found a few peices of solid adamant cybernetic limb to something. "Nope." I said as I set that box aside and opened another.

This one gave way to the revealing of a cylindrical weapon charm that was made of solid gold and was shaped like a small golden carving decorated cylinder with twin hollow golden orbs on either side of the cylinder. I rubbed my fingers on the relic and the carvings momentarily lit up a golden light, and I smiled at the fact it was still alive. "Good to see, but not what I need yet." I surmised as I set that box aside as well.

"Nathan, may I come in?" I heard Oriha's voice ask, without the usual song tone mixed in.

Hearing her, I smiled. "Of course, Oriha. What's up?" I asked in response as I turned to her and popped my neck.

And of course, the cute little Oriha smiled back to me and simply replied, "Oh, nothing, just curious about what you're looking for."

I tore open another box while grunting and answering with, "My sword. Well, another one of them, anyway. It's black hilted with a pure black scabbard and a little bit of crystal woven in with the fabric wrapped onto the scabbard, giving it a starry sky look. Find that and give it to me, please." as I saw that the box I tore open held a blood red cape attached to a latch peice that is supposed to be put on the shoulder.

I pushed it aside as I kept looking for a bit. 'Where is it, where is it?' I grumbled in my own mind. "I found it." Oriha sang out to me.

Hearing that, I smiled warmly as I walked over to her and got completely off track. I hugged her and kissed her lips deeply. She made a sound of surprise and then she just kept kissing with me. Her wings of light pushed back the lesser electric lighting around us, and then faded away. Our lips moved and mushed with one another until we pulled out of the kiss and I smiled warmly and humorously. "You're so cute, Oriha." I told her.

She smiled and giggled with her usual musical mix in with her voice. "You're so sweet, Nathan." she replied as she kissed me again. "Maybe we can-" she began to suggest as I felt the air become colder.

"Master, have you found what you're looking for?" she asked as I looked to my left to find a silhouette of Akitsu with blazing grey blue lights for her eyes glowing harshly and eerily at me.

It was at that moment that I could tell she didn't like seeing me with another sekirei, but yet she wasn't too angry. I quickly picked up the black handled and black scabbarded weapon with one hand and walked with Akitsu and Oriha. "U-um, yeah." I answered as I giggled nervously.

"What is that you're holding?" she questioned.

I smiled as I put Muramasa at my belt and held the black scabbard in my hand, carressing it lightly with my thumb. "It's something I'm keeping in my armory until I plan on using it." I answered as I put it in the armory.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

I was in my front yard, holding Muramasa in my hands with my feet planted into the ground, holding a good balance. The dusk painted the sky that pleasant pink-orange and grey color that I always desired, and the clouds were a heavy contrast of pink and silver. The wind had a rather sweet scent to it, and it helped me calm down and focus from all of the things that happened, what with Minaka officially igniting the Ashikabis' fuses for battle. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "In..." I recited as I opened my eyes. "Out." I finished as I horizontally full moon slashed, and just as I saw forms of water spawn, my kinetic slice had dissipated them.

I sheathed Muramasa and popped my neck before looking to my right to find Tsukiumi walking to me. She looked at me with her deep sea eyes and her face was almost glazed in a rather calm and yet concerned way. "You are not suited for the stressful mood, you know." she told me as I smiled and chuckled.

"I'm not used to hearing you say 'you'." I responded as she squished both of my cheeks together with her hands.

"Oh, shut up." she retorted as she saw something in my eyes and let go of my cheeks. "Are you sure that you're not too stressed about this?" she asked.

I smiled with false confidence. "I'm not stressed about this." I argued as I held her cheek. "As long as you and my other sekireis are with me, I'm sound as a pound." I assured as I felt her face begin to heat up with the rest of her body.

"Are you going to get in your armor and head off?" she asked me.

I chuckled merrily and closed my eyes. "How do you read me so well?" I asked as I opened my eyes to a smiling Tsukiumi.

"Do me a favor, husband. Don't get hurt." she requested as we kissed long and deep.

I giggled and hugged her. "You're such an awesome woman, Tsukiumi. When we met, you sounded more likely to kill me than love me so much." I admitted as I kissed her neck.

She held me tighter with her arms wrapped around me. "That's because I thought you were like the rest of the humans."

"I'm not, believe me. I'm just cookoo cuchoo." I joked as she play slapped me and we began to play fight and run around.

As I ran and leapt my way around the front yard, Tsukiumi was hurling blue crystal water at me, which I easily dodged. I took out Muramasa and smiled gleefully as I foresaw an incoming Water Celebration. Muramasa had charged up some bloodlight and I was just about to vaporize the water before I saw it freeze before I could even do anything. "Master, you **do** have a schedule to keep." Akitsu's voice reminded my from the front door.

I widened my eyes. "Holy crap, you're right!" I cried out as I put Muramasa away and ran up and kissed Akitsu's cheek. "You're a lifesaver!"

I ran into the armory and put on my light suit of armor with the cybernetic helmet mask that came with it, and I took my twin kuckle guarded arc-knives with me. I walked my way out of the armory and into the living room without my helmet on, and I saw Kagayaki standing in front of me, in a more nervous and shy way, looking ever so slightly up to me with a downward tilted head and her hands behind her back. Seeing this, I smiled warmly and pet her hair before kissing her forehead. "I'll only be gone for a few hours. I'll be back before you know it, okay?" I asked her, offering some comfort.

She was still silent and looking up to me. I sighed and said, "You can come with me too, but try to stay close, okay?"

She instantly lit up a little bit and said,"Okay, Nathan."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, so tell me, what do you like?" I asked Katsuragi over the helmet comm as I landed on my feet upon a rooftop. "Because I'm a pretty big fan of music and movies."

For a second, she was unresponsive before she answered with, "I liked that ice cream cone you bought me a week ago."

"Oh yeah, I remember that!" I chuckled appreciatively. "Well, it's good to know you like ice cream."

We were on patrol from the roof tops to make sure that nobody was doing anything wrong with an unwinged sekirei or just a helpless ashikabi or anything. "So, can you use energy manipulation or flight or any of that business?" I asked her.

"No, master. I'm a full body fighting type sekirei." she answered.

"The types confuse me, it's like you're a pokemon or something. What typses are there?" I asked.

"There are lots of types. Musubi is a fist type, Tsukiumi and Akitsu, as well as Midasu and Kagayaki are elemental types. Benitsubasa is a fist type too, and Oriha is a weapon type with her saw gears." she explained over the comm to the best of her ability.

I smiled. "Cool, cool." I complimented as I landed on a rooftop upon a really tall skyscraper. "Ahhh... Katsuragi, the night sure is beautiful, isn't it?" I asked.

There was no response over the comm. At this, I became concerned. "Katsuragi, come in. Do you read?" I asked.

No response still. "Do you read, Katsuragi?" I repeated.

"Don't be so afraid, I only knocked her unconscious." a familiar woman's voice assured as I saw her walk to my side.

Silver long hair, black gi with a grey overcoat, the black sekirei symbol on the cusp of the back-neck on the coat, and a nodachi at her hip. Her face wasn't ugly, it was actually quite nice, but she was still just creepy and venomous, like Haihane. I had never seen her before, yet I recognized her somehow. "I... um... Okay, then." I calmly slumped.

She smiled and veered her evil grey blazed eyes to me. "Nathan Felix, A.K.A Cable." she recited to me. "A commission artist from America with a degree of 5-years of education from Academy of the Arts, and brother of the late Alan Felix. First sekirei, Number 7, previously the broken number, Akitsu the Ice sekirei." she continued. "And decommissioner of Benitsubasa, the red sekirei. You're quite the activist, Cable."

My eyes were widened like quarters, and my breath caught in my throat. 'The fuck is she?' I asked myself, barely stable from the venom in her voice as she recited all my info. "Well... I'm curious, who are you?" I spuddered in curiousity.

She smiled gleefully with her eyes closed, satanism dripping from her. "Sekirei number 4, Karasuba. And currently unwinged." she greeted.

I almost **died** from those last few words. "Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa! What does **that** mean?" I asked.

She smiled more. "I think you know."

'Oh no... Oh crap.' I said to myself.


	16. A night's work

Karasuba smiled to me, amused by my fear for myself. The wind blew eerily and yet softly in the night as the stars and pale moon glared at us anticipantly, as if they were the audience to this ordeal. My breath wouldn't allow me to make words, for they would get caught up in my throat and die. I finally managed to spit out, "I know what?" like an idiot.

She still smiled in that venomous way and answered, "No need to be stupid. I simply mean to meet you." while nearing closer to me. "And other things."

'What the hell? She's like a living nightmare.' I asked myself. "Other things like what?" I questioned her.

She giggled at me and she took out her nodachi at her hip. "I've seen your crimson weapon once or twice, Nathan Felix. Muramasa." she hinted to me.

"Not interested in that." I told her as she swiftly took her blade and swiped it across my face.

My helmet fell apart into small metal plates and broken cybernetics at my feet, revealing my face. My eyes widened. 'What the hell? She just broke my helmet like it was a toy.' I grunted in confusion and startlement as I found Katsuragi laying unconscious a few inches away from my feet. "You should just give me this, I had a present sent to you this morning." she told me.

I sneered and took out my arc-knives. "I'll return it with utmost urgency. Right now, someone else's safety is at risk in this so called Sekirei Plan, and I don't know how much her body could take before she's terminated." I retorted. "So I trust you'll forgive me for a little urgency in this."

She looked a tad bit observant and curious at me. "Why? We have time-" she started to argue before I interrupted her.

"Whoops, look at the time. Sorry, gotta run. Bye!" I announced as I took out a grenade and tossed it at the ground before picking up Katsuragi and leaping off the building.

As we fell a few feet, an explosion of neon purple energy and black shade discharged in a dome-like radius from where the grenade was. Holding Katsuragi in one arm, still unconscious, I smiled in some sort of praise. "Glad that's over." I whispered to myself as I used the side of the building as a solid surface to jump off of in order to get us to a safer place.

An hour or so later, she and I were on top of a random manufacturing building. She was sleeping soundly and motionlessly, almost peaceful. If only she wasn't harshly sent into that way by a physical strike by that viper woman. 'Karasuba... Who in the hell was she?' I asked myself in my mind as I put away my arc-knife in my hand and continued to sit by Katsuragi's side until she'd wake up. "It seems I was correct to come to thy aid, Nathan." Tsukiumi's voice boomed as I saw her drop to her feet from the sky, landing next to me and holding Muramasa in her hand. "I think thou wouldst need this."

I smiled appreciatively and took Muramasa's sheath in one hand and took Muramasa out of it with the other. "Hi, Tsukiumi." I greeted gleefully.

She slapped my cheek immediately, hard and swift with post-human strength in her arm. The impact of her hand actually made me stumble to the side a little bit, staggering a little as I looked over to her face. She was very disapproving and very irritated at me, I could easily read that with her frown of anger and the blazing of her sapphire eyes. "What were thou thinking? Getting into combat with no more than Katsuragi as backup? Art thou daft?" she interrogated.

"That's not very nice, Tsukiumi." I commented as I regained a little bit of stability in my feet. "I was actually planning on going alone, but I couldn't refuse Katsuragi some time with me. Kind of like when I spent that day with you, hon." I explained to her.

She blinked in surprise and her face calmed down, looking more apologetic and loving than anything else. She smiled a little bit, and tilted her head to the side just a crack. "Fair enough, husband. Except she's unconscious and thy helmet isn't on thee. Why is that?" she asked.

"A sekirei took a nodachi and slashed my helmet off. She also knocked Katsuragi unconscious, and tried to instigate a fight before I set off that tear gas grenade for our escape. She said she was number four... that viper-" I began to tapir off and grumble as I heard her shout.

"**Number four**?!" she cried out fearfully.

I was silent as I saw Tsukiumi, the most confident and the strongest woman I know, the one who's **always** up for a challenge, a female representation of the ragin oceans themselves; I saw that Tsukiumi tremble and shudder in a nightmarish terror. I gave a look of serious concern, for she looked like she was going to drop dead where she stood, or faint. Or possibly both. "Tsukiumi?" I asked. "Are you alright?"

"The devil! You survived the devil by a slight hair!" she cried out, screaming fearfully. "We're going to die!"

I caught her wrists tightly and held her close to me, looking into her eyes and sheathing Muramasa, and shanking the sheetrock of the roof with the scabbard, making it stand upright. "Tsukiumi, we will **not** die." I boomed to her, my eyes flaring with seriousness. "I will personally ensure that, okay?"

Her eyes became misty and starlit, sparkling and reflecting the moon's pale light upon her azure eyes. Her eyelids partially began to cover her eyes and her face became adorned with a rosy pink upon her cheeks. I softly let go of her wrists and held her at her hips gently as she and I leaned in for a kiss. "Yes, Nathan." she whispered joyously as we kissed on the rooftop in the moonlight.

Her wings shone out, pushing away the darkness of the night around us and adding more color to the opposed moon's gaze. Our lips massaged one another and our tongues wrestled and danced in each other's mouths as she groaned out in pleasure and a wave of sweet bodily fire consumed us both. That inticed us to keep going with our kiss, and we didn't resist. I dug my hands and fingers into the dress she wore, pressing to her ample and beautiful flesh with my fingers. After minutes of kissing and rubbing one another, I heard a sound of a crash impact and a young woman's voice cry out, "Get away! Leave me alone!"

We both looked over in the direction of the sounds. "You may join me when Katsuragi's awake. Until then, I'm still on patrol, and you're on guard duty." I ordered softly but sternly as metal and cybernetic plating flung ot my face, forming my helmet as I picked up Muramasa and leapt across rooftops to help whoever was shouting and trying to escape from someone.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"So, are we going to do this the easy way, or the hard way?" I asked as I took out Muramasa from its sheath and the blade ignited with bloodlight.

The challenger in question was a nearly nude woman wearing nothing but white flowing fabric veils all around her body, even concealing her face and making a rather fancy looking battle appearance to her form of stance. I could only see the ends of light umber hair as I examined who she might be. No immediate suggestions of idenification came up for me as I kept examining the sekirei. Her body was slim and fit, she looked to have smooth skin, a peachy color as well, but she was so mysterious that I couldn't take too much pleasure from looking at her. She frowned at me, in a very dissatisfied way. "The Armored Ashikabi. Cable. I figured you'd show up." she summarized.

I was silent for a moment before asking a question. "What do you mean? You were expecting me?"

"That sekirei wasn't my target, Cable." she answered as the veils around her began to fluctuate as she took stance. "You are. You can come quietly, or I can kill you."

I smiled as more bloodlight illimunated upon my blade. "I've got news for you, I'm not easy to kill, young lady." I responded to her ultimatum as I quickly bashed the butt of my hilt to the ground, causing the ground to crack and fissure before kinetic explosions burst from the ground, and all of this was happening in a fan-like link feild directly in front of me.

The sekirei antagonist stumbled and staggered back as the conflagration and earthquake gave way from under her feet, and she even grunted and groaned loudly from the impacts. Seeing this, and the defensive fluctation of white fabric veils, I smiled and slashed horizontally with all of my force in my right hand. The beam of blood and dusk red light gave way to gashes in the buildings in my path, and most of her veils being gone, yet her bodily fabric and her face were still intact and concealed. She grunted angrily. "You...!" she growled.

"I can do more, kid. One slash and your heart stops, at the rate of the beating I'm giving you." I retorted as the tip of my hilt began to smoke a black-red miasma and glow with bloodlight. "Or I could make the sky fall upon you."

She grimaced and jumped away, leaping from rooftop to rooftop in order to escape. "Hold it, cur!" Tsukiumi's voice boomed as she and Katsuragi landed on their feet next to me.

"Let her go, Tsukiumi. I gave her enough of a beating to scare her off. Now I just have to take care of something." I told her.

"Nathan?" she asked. "She attacked thee, aren't thou going to-?"

"My word is set, Tsukiumi. Do not pursue that... veiled sekirei. We find her again, I will personally help you bring her down." I snapped.

She understood me, and silently nodded. "Understood." she affirmed.

I looked to my left to find a silver haired young girl, barely about Yukari's age, probably younger, in tattered standard bishounen clothing and unconscious. 'Poor girl. She didn't ask for this.' I said to myself. "Tsukiumi, carry this sekirei to a spare room at the palace. I must see someone tonight, and I must secure Minato." I ordered softly to her.

"Alone?" she asked.

"I'll have Katsuragi sent back with you to mend that bash on her head, so send Benitsubasa on my trail. Please." I requested.

"Master?" Katsuragi asked as she held my arm with one hand, brushing her fingers on my armor.

I took off my helmet with a mental urge, and when it folded back, I smiled to her warmly. "You did very good tonight, Katsuragi." I assured as I pet her hair. "I'll have a whole day planned out for you tomorrow, I promise."

She smiled a little, and nodded. "Okay."

I looked north and leapt my way to the air and landed on a rooftop. As soon as I landed solidly on my feet, I bolted my way to Maison Izumo. As I bound each building, I kept contemplating to myself. 'I need to gain information about that viper from Matsu, maybe that MBI database can help me identify who and what she is. But still, I haven't seen Matsu in a long time, I might be in for a not-so-good time.'

XXXXXXXXXXXX

I landed in front of Maison Izumo and folded back my helmet before walking into the inn. Thankfully, nobody was asleep or anything, the lights were on and Miya Ayama was at the dining room table with Minato and the others. Matsu as well. They saw the blasts from my own earthquake on my armor plating and I could almost feel that my mind was being read. I smiled with a frank sense of relaxation. "I've kinda had a weird night, can I have a moment to stay here?" I asked as I saw this girl.

She had brown long hair in a rather unique style, and she wore a purple shirt with a yellow six prong star on the chest, and linnen capri pants. She looked at me as if she feared me, and I was confused beyond all comparison. "Um... do I know you?" I asked her awkwardly.

She looked back and forth between me and Miya. I analyzed this fear that she displayed, and scanned each muscle movement with careful attention. 'She looks so scared of something, but what is there to fear?' I asked myself. "No, I don't think so. My name is Uzume." she greeted.

I smiled. "Name's Nathan. Wonderful to meet you." I greeted as I looked over to Matsu, and I melted into a more melancholy face. "If you fine people will excuse me. I need a little bit of private time with someone."

I walked my way into the backyard and simply stood there waiting, holding Muramasa in my fingers at my belt. My heart sank little by little as I took each step and sat down. "Nathan, what happened to you out there?" she asked me as I felt her sit down next to me.

"A sekirei tried to assassinate me, and before that, Sekirei number four nearly decimated Katsuragi and told me that-" I began to answer.

She wailed out in fear, no, absolute terror and nightmare. "Karasuba!?" she cried out. "That demon?! You **met** her?!"

I blinked in confusion as I silently nodded in affirmation. 'How does she know this woman? Maybe because...' I thought to myself as Benitsubasa landed on her feet a few feet in front of us. She closed her eyes and opened them with a warm and yet envigorated smile, like I had invited her to a fight or something, or to a mass warfront. "Good evening, Nathan. Miss me?" she asked and greeted.

Matsu wailed in terror. "The Red Sekirei!?" she cried out. "You brought a member of the **discipline squad** here?!"

I raised a brow to her. "No, no, no. She was decommissioned from the Discipline Squad upon becoming my sekirei." I explained.

Benitsubasa sat down on the other side of me from Matsu and kissed my cheek. "And I'm happy for it." she whispered.

I kissed her lips lightly and whispered, "Can you do me a favor and take patrol with me for awhile?"

She giggled smugly. "Anything for you."

I smiled and looked my way to Matsu. "Matsu, I need you to do me a really big favor and I'd really appreciate if you can give me more information about a veiled sekirei that tried to assassinate me." I requested her.

She was still shivering and trembling, the white glow reflection from her glasses hiding her eyes. "The Red Sekirei... She sees me~!" Matsu whimpered.

I rolled my eyes and gave a brash grin out to her. "She's not in MBI anymore, Matsu, quit being a scaredy cat."

Benitsubasa gave a condescending giggle and a devious crimson glint glare of her eyes to Matsu. "Come to Benitsubasa. Feed me your soul!" she growled.

"Eeeeeeee~! No!" she wailed as she tried to hide behind me, like a sheild.

I smiled and began to laugh a little bit. "Hey, hey, no soul stealing." I said as I grabbed Muramasa's hilt and I grinned showing teeth. "Her soul is **mine**." I growled as an inside joke with Benitsubasa.

We were all laughing and I was getting play slapped by Matsu for a few minutes. I took my time to enjoy it with them before I stood up and said, "Come on, Benitsubasa. We'd better get some patrol on before morning."

She stood up with me and put on an excited happy face, with stars in her eyes. "Okay, Nathan! Let's go!"

I took her hand in mine as we both leapt up into the air, of which we landed on a building roof. We kept jumping around and looking below for anyone else, but nobody suspicious came up to us. Minutes later, she and I stood on top of a random skyscraper and simply looked down on the lower streets and buildings of the city. She and I were standing really close and we were hardly touching one another. Seeing this, I smiled and held her to my side with one arm. "Benitsubasa, you really helped out tonight. Maybe tomorrow you and I could patrol all night." I thanked and offered her.

Her eyes widened and became starry before she blushed and almost closed them. "Oh stop being such a kiss-ass. You know I love it, and you're just buttering me up." she gave feedback.

I smiled and leaned in for a kiss. "I'm American, the standard kiss-ass behavior is a common standard."

She giggled lightly and leaned in with me. "That **so** makes me flare up, like a mistress."

We kissed deeply, and her blazing rose fire wings pushed and threw back the shade around us and darkened the tones behind the edges of the building roof. I held her by her thigh muscles directly below her butt on one leg and with my other hand I held her back as we continued to kiss more. Our mouths continued to dance and wrestle as we held tighter and tighter to one another, and her body began to heat up and surge with warmth and a delicious love and sweat began to fall down her skin. We pulled out of the kiss and looked into each other's eyes, softly and yet deeply and ferociously. "I love you, Nathan Felix." she simpered, as if her voice was going to turn to liquid from emotional pressure and euphoria.

"I love you too." I whispered.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, I woke up to nothing less than the unusual. John's voice was spouting the sound, "Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" from my phone on the nightstand next to my side of the bed. Akitsu and I were groaning and grumbling tiredly as I picked up the phone and turned it off. I snuggled with Akitsu in my tired annoyingness and I whimpered, "Why am I always being woken up by John?"

Akitsu kissed my forehead and said, "Americans are just so strange."

I began to giggle and laugh in hilarious joy as I kissed her cheek with a big press. "I know, honey, I know." I replied as we both got up out of bed.

"Nathan, I believe that the sekirei that Tsukiumi and Katsuragi brought home is now awake." she informed me.

I smiled and scratched my head a little bit. "Oh yeah, I should at least try to make up for her being dragged into my assassination recieption attempt last night." I remarked as I put on a white T-shirt and grey sweatpants. "She kind of deserves a little payment"

We walked downstairs and I found the grey haired girl on my couch, sleeping in those tatters from the attack attempt on my life. 'Poor girl... If only I could have helped her sooner and kept her from being unconscious.' I contemplated to myself as I put on more of a sad expression and I saw Kagayaki holding Muramasa in her hands, offering it to me. She gave out a smile and she used her prismal light powers to make everything all rosy pink around her, like some strange anime effect. "You might want to be a little more careful with this, Ashikabi-kun~!" she told me in a cute tone.

I chuckled and smiled warmly to her. "I will, Kagayaki. I promise." I assured as I heard the usual interjection with my conversations.

"Nathan Felix!" Tsukiumi's voice roared from the kitchen.

I jolted and bounced up in my spot as I took Muramasa and cried out, "Yes ma'am!"

"Breakfeast is ready. I prepared a plate for thee, and the sekirei thou hast brought into your home." she announced to me.

Just as she announced that to me, I noticed the slumbering sekirei starting to awaken and stir, making groaning noises from the couch. We all looked her way as I walked over to the couch and I lowered myself to one knee as her eyelids began to part, and I saw her silvery grey blue tinted eyes. She was very cute, and very young looking, similar to Yukari. Except Yukari was more " Lolita and I love it" and this new young lady was more so "Though I'm cute, please just be nice". I smiled warmly and greeted her. "Good morning, mi'lady. I hope you slept well."


	17. Intuition

After breakfeast, I was in the house's gym room with Katsuragi, building myself with all kinds of bodily excercises and movement forms. Inverted push-ups, crunches, clap push-ups, pull ups, sit ups, et cetera. It was tiring in a well said degree, hence the fact that I had performed about 500 of each excercise. Katsuragi was following suit with me, out of the strange curiousity of how us humans kept in shape and fit form. "Master, how do you stay fit?" she asked me.

I smiled showing teeth, and chuckled in a humored way. "It ain't easy. I don't have a sekirei's augmented physiology." I answered as I took off my shirt and began to do inverted push-ups.

Twenty minutes went by after we had that small Q &A, and I was barely starting to burn up my energy. Thirty minutes passed, and I was sweating to cool down the skin heat and intense bodily fire from expended energy and excercises' fatigue. Forty minutes passed and although I was almost done, I was almost going to pass out from mental and bodily strain that I had put on myself. When I was done, I sat down sloppily on a stool, sweating like a grease pig, drinking all of the water from a gallon jug in my hands. Katsuragi looked to me with an expression of plain concern on her cute face. "Maybe you would like to take a nap?" she asked.

I chuckled fatiguedly and ruffled through my sweat caked hair with my fingers, and I answered her concerned words with, "No, I'm fine Katsuragi. Just a little expended." panting and gasping with each second, each word.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

"So... you're the reason that sekirei attacked me?" the silver haired girl asked me as Tsukiumi handed me a bowl of noodles and chop sticks.

I smiled to Tsukiumi. "Thanks." I said to her as I looked back to my subject at hand. "Yeah, I'm sorry about that, miss..."

"Shiina. My name is Shiina." she finished.

"Shiina. I'm to blame for your assault, she tried to assassinate **me**, and attacked you because she must've seen that I was on patrol as Cable." I explained to her. " Plus I had a strange-"

She interrupted me with a surprising amount of vigor. "Cable? The Armored Ashikabi?! **You're** Cable?!"

For a few moments, which were filled with confusion and a gut wrenching nervousness, I was silent. "I... um... yeah, that's me. How is it that you know who I am?" I responded.

She widened her shiny stormcloud eyes in excitement and smiled in a befuddled way. "You're a hero! You saved Ku from all of the other ashikabis a week or so ago. Everyone knows about you." she answered with much more vigor.

"It's true." Tsukiumi chimed in. "Every sekirei and ashikabi know about the mysterious Cable. Thou art quite famous for the unwinged, but the ashikabis hate thee."

"Everyone except for Minato and Seo." Akitsu corrected.

Shiina blinked in awe at Akitsu, as if she were seeing both a living nightmare and a movie star. "Ah...Ah... Akitsu...? You're real?" she bubbled weakly.

Akitsu and I both looked to the awestruck sekirei, confusedly. "What?" we both asked her.

"I didn't think you were real. Are you one of Cable's sekireis?" she asked, sitting up more on the couch.

She looked to her with her same monotonous face, and her eyes gave off a loving glint as she blushed lightly. "I'm his first sekirei. The rumors you've heard are no longer true, I am winged." she answered.

She looked back and forth between Akitsu and I. "You were winged by an American man? Strange, I've never seen foreign people."

I smiled smugly. "I don't see any Japanese men that can save your butt and cause artificial earthquakes." I chimed in as I took another bite of Tsukiumi's breakfast.

Shiina giggled a little bit as she ruffled her hair, which was also silver and more so in the fashion of a bishounnen. "Well, that's true." she bubbled bashfully as I began to notice how innocently cute she was.

I smiled and finished eating, but I was still hungry as I made a kissy face to Tsukiumi. "Can I have seconds, please baby?" I asked.

She gave me a second helping and a kiss on the lips. Moments later, I looked back to Shiina and smiled to her warmly. "Our house is open to you." I told her as I finished eating. "If you need anything, just ask."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Hours later, I was in my studio room, just sitting still on my stool in front of a canvas, blank and soulless. It was always invigorating for me to see blank things, because I was always thinking about what to do. I've always taken blank and created a masterpiece, but for the time being I only wanted to stay within the calm confines of my surprisingly roomy studio room. 'Shiina... that girl is surprisingly cute. But I wonder about-' I began to ponder to myself as I heard someone walk in.

My immediate reaction was a 180º spin and the unsheathing of Muramasa in its Tengu form, the blade still long and prominent and glowing with bloodlight. The air around me began to faze and burn all around me as I took a surprise stance. But the only one in the room that entered was Akitsu. Seeing this, I let out a breath of relief and I put Muramasa away. "Scared me for a second. I thought you were-" I began to apologize.

"Number four. Karasuba." she finished for me. "I know you encountered her. I'm not her."

I smiled and began to chuckle gratefully as I pulled out a stool for her. "Yeah, I know." I replied as I gestured to the stool. "Perhaps you'd like a commission?"

She looked at me with her monotonous expression as always, tinted with confusion. "I have no money."

I walked to her and held her hips in my hands, gently and firmly. Looking into her starlit diamondlike eyes, I smiled and said to her, "You know you get everything you want for free. At least from me."

She wrapped her arms around me and we pressed our lips together intently. Our kiss was just as magical as it usually is, being that she is my first sekirei and everything. Her breasts pressed to my chest let us feel each other's warm beating hearts and she became enflamed by bodily excitement and lust. She was absolutely perfect, so cold and yet always heating like a supernova. We were breathing heavily through our noses as we kissed deeper and deeper, and I began to strip her slowly with my hands, feeling her smooth supple body in my hands. She pulled out of the kiss, but I began to lavish her body, kissing and suckling upon her. Her entire body began to blush as she moaned out, "N-n-nathan!"

I made myself begin to slip my male flesh into her, hearing her cry out in pleasure. "Just a quickie, then we'll go grocery shopping, just in case." I whispered to her.

She whimpered with a sensitive pleasure as she held my back with her arms wrapped around me tightly. "A-a-anything for you, Nathan!" she cried out in a failed attempt to whisper.

I began to make my love to her and lick kiss her deeply as I noticed that her bodily temperature was rising more than ever, and her skin actually started to tingle at my touch. 'Maybe I'm just going crazy, but I think I feel Akitsu powering up or something. Maybe she's just finally reacting to sex with me, in terms of her powers.' I pondered to the back of my mind as I continued to love and thrust into her beautiful supple body. We kept gaining momentum as we licked and kissed one another until we both gave out a cry of an orgasm and we came. We sat there, flesh joined, panting and sweating and looking into each other's eyes. I smiled warmly as I said to her, "I think I'm starting to go insane." joking as I began to cool down.

She kissed me once again, and her wings began to blaze from her back once again, but they were burning brighter, almost doubly so. Noticing this, I only brushed it aside, because something told me that only good could come out of that. We kissed longer and deeper, the ionized fire of my pact with Akitsu only burning brighter and brighter. We finally pulled out of the kiss when she said to me, "I think you wanted me to go grocery shopping."

I nodded as I put my clothing back on. "Yeah, I'll need you and Tsukiumi to go get some more food. I left a grocery list on the kitchen counter for you two. And tell her that whoever wins a race back here gets to sit with me at the dinner table." I instructed her with an entertained smile upon my lips.

She nodded and affirmed, "Of course, Nathan. I'll be back."

"And tell Tsukiumi that I'd like a little bit of rain tonight, if it please her. I haven't seen much lately, and its rather attractive to my tastes right now." I added.

She walked away with no words, but I already knew she'd do it, so I didn't try to be too direct or commanding for a response. Knowing Akitsu, I simply decided to be glad that she wasn't Number Four, that ruthless viper who scared the living shit out of me. I chuckled to myself with a breath out my nostrils and I began to walk out of my studio room before something else happened. I heard a knock on the door, since Akitsu closed it behind her when she walked out, and I heard Midasu ask aloud in a muffle from behind the door, "Nathan? Are you busy? Who're you pleasing in there?"

I laughed a little, absolutely humored and thrown off of my immediate train of thought. "Midasu, I'm just walking out of here." I answered as I opened the door to find her in nothing but a thin black bathrobe covering her smooth skinned peachy naked body.

Her hair was let down over her shoulders and I noticed how her white blonde waves of hair reflected the sunlight. Even though she was a sekirei who used shade energy, it was still nice to see a light around her. I smiled warmly and I scratched my head. "Why are you in such attire?" I asked her. "Another nudie commish?"

She looked at me with a seriousness in her eyes, and her face became melancholy as she hugged and held me tightly. I held her to me gently and yet firmly as I asked, "Midasu? Is everything okay?"

She whimpered a little bit. "We're out of cookie dough."

I actually began to chuckle and laugh a little bit. "I told Akitsu to buy some groceries with Tsukiumi for us, okay baby girl?" I comforted.

She looked into my eyes and smiled. "Not for us JUST to make cookies. I wanted you to eat off of my boobies. Obviously you like sweet things." she sleazed as she closed the door with a misty tendril of shadow and took off her thin robe.

Her body was perfect, like all of my sekireis, but Midasu in general was a favorite of mine to paint or draw, because though she wasn't all that shorter than me, she still had rather smaller nipples than some of my sekireis, and I found that super attractive. She smiled deviously as she stroked my chest, and the room became engrossed in a living shade that seemed to live like her. And it seemed just as horny as her. "Are you ready to begin, my beloved ashikabi?" she hungrily and questioningly giggled while licking her lips.

Seeing all of this, I did little more than smile challengingly. "Bring it on, delicious." I provoked.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Hours later, I was asleep in my bed with Akitsu, snuggling up to her more than usual. She and I were naked, and up close and personal with one another's warm bodies. I was all content and happy to be in bed with a woman already, it always made me so happy to be in bed with Akitsu. But though my situation was happy, my dreams changed it in one fell swoop. I was alone, holding Muramasa in its Tengu form in my hands, my body was bruised and nicked all around, and I could hardly stand between my heavy breaths of desperate need for rest. Minaka and Karasuba, as well as an entire legion of MBI soldiers were standing at my wake, ready to shoot down any effort to fight. We were standing on a flaming big bridge, and the stars of the night were drowned out by the firelight and smoke up all around us. The wind was blowing violently, and the smoke and dust refused to settle around us. Minaka smiled at me geriatrically, and he opened his mouth to speak. "You were such a fine player in this magnificent little game, Nathan Felix!" he congratulated. "But you have failed the young children that depended on you."

I took a few more gasps before I responded. "Children? What children?"

My response actually made that viper snicker and venomously grin at me. "And you don't even know. Predictable for a moron like you." she antagonized.

"Now, now, there can be a chance for him." Minaka chided her.

Then they all vanished with smoke blurring my vision as I saw them. One was a guy with spiky-ish light brown hair, and more of a skinny kid look similar to Minato. Average style choice, more of a serious and grumpy yet mild mannered exterior. An average human kid. Then there was the girl with him, who was also very integral in this little dream of the future (or something corny like that). She was petite, and young- possibly younger than Yukari or Shiina. She had spiky-ish messy blonde hair and was in a sort of casual sailor outfit or school girl outfit or something, I didn't know. But she was also lacking in the... er... "junk in her trunk" as Jon or one of my other friends in America would say. She looked underdeveloped in womanly features, but still cute in that way. Not to state attractivity to her, I was not interested in being with her.

I woke up abruptly in the morning, barely at the crack of dawn. I was sweating lightly, and breathing heavily from the intensity of my nightmare. Akitsu woke up with me, more calmly and lightheartedly than I did. She noticed me scrambling around and putting my black full body under-armour on; and I wasn't being too loud either. Yet again, I was also being a bit clumsy in my movements. She stretched and groaned a little bit, and asked me, "Nathan?"

I swiftly answered her. "Akitsu, wake Benitsubasa and the others. All of us are going to eat, wash our faces, bathe, and then go hunting."

She got up and began to walk over to a wall hanger and she picked up her white and black kimono gear. "What do you mean? Who are we hunting?" she asked in continuance with me.

"I... Uh, actually, I don't know who they are. But I saw them in a dream." I admitted. "They're targets for protection, not to kill or decimate them."

"As you wish, Nathan." she affirmed as I sped towards her and dipped her down, kissing her deeply.

I smiled wholeheartedly and friskily. "If you keep being so affirmative, I'll have to make love to you." I warned in a humored way.

Then, the unexpected happened. She smiled a crack more than she usually does, and her eyes radiated a sudden horniness that I've seen before (all the time) but it still surprised me. "Very well, Nathan." she sleazed in her monotonous and yet hungry way.

That morning, we made passionate and newly disgusting love in our bed, and partially in our closet. But even then, I still knew what I had to do. Whoever those kids were, I had to help them.

And I'd need Minato as well.


	18. Stress

I held a scrambler rifle in my hands as I stood on top of a skyscraper that stood over a rather urban area of Tokyo. My armor was a black, thicker plated suit outfitted with rockets and a cloaking ability for invisibility. My helmet was black and heavily plated compared to some of my other suits, with a small 2-inch by 3-inch lit up square for a visor, also with a few miniscule cameras amongst the plating for visual in case my primary visor went blank. At my sides were twin arc-knives, and at my back was an energy based horizontal flatline ray sniper rifle. I didn't have Muramasa anyway, simply because I could summon it to my grasp whever I wanted. I closed my eyes and took a breath of the fresh air, tinted with the food of nearby restraunts and vendors in the streets. I smiled as I opened my eyes to look at the crisp, blue and partially cloudy sky. "Cable to Tsukiumi, status report." I directed over a comm link.

_ Click!_ "No sign of the people thou hast described to us, Cable." she responded.

"Ugh, very well then. Keep on the watch, along with Musubi." I replied. "Cable to Oriha, have you found that veiled sekirei?"

_Click!_ "Nope, not yet." Oriha replied in an ordinary and yet cute way. "But we'll keep looking."

I smiled. "Very good." I finished as I switched over to my sniper rifle.

'Whoever those kids are, they must be really important. To think that I saw them in a dream, no less.' I thought to myself as my helmet connected wirelessly to my scope and I kept looking at a magnified degree over the outlying area. 'A blonde girl and a kid about Minato's age. They shouldn't be that hard to find, especially of they appeared to be at the highlights with Minaka and that demon woman. Maybe that veiled sekirei might try to crack at me again. I have to make sure to decimate her if she tries anything stupid.' I continued to ponder as I disconnected from the scope and I looked to another edge of the rooftop.

I walked to the edge of the rooftop and I looked down upon the city area all around me. "Um, Nathan?" Minato's voice asked me from behind me.

I turned over to him as I put my weapon away and turned my head to him, taking off my helmet and holding it in my hands. I fully turned around to see Minato and Benitsubasa standing on the rooftop with me. I smiled gleefully upon seeing him. "Forgive me for my seriousness, Minato. I dragged you out of our afternoon classes for this." I apologized.

He smiled to me and scratched his head in that way he usually does. "No, don't mention it, Nathan. Er, I mean-" he responded.

"You're on my side, and my closest friend here. You can call me Nathan." I interrupted as I put on my helmet and took out my weapon again. "I'm just sorry you can't fight for yourself. If you knew how to use 'em, I'd give you a spare arc-weapon."

Benitsubasa stepped to my side rather quickly. "Master, you can count on us to protect you two." she burst out.

I grinned to myself under my helmet as I continued to look through my scope, down upon the city. "And I plan to trust you for that, my red sekirei." I replied warmly.

I continued to keep my vigilance across the scope's range along the area, as she kissed my helmet's cheek. "Anything for you." she whispered as she kissed me more and more, trying not to interfere with my actions as she did so. "I love you." she continued.

"And I love you." I replied immediately as I saw it.

Further away, even with a magnified scope, I saw a burst of dust from a heavy impact, and my helmet's sonar upon the region I saw revealed the sound of a young man's grunts and a loud scream. I became intensified by this as I called out, " Cable to everyone! There is an attack upon someone, possibly a sekirei and her ashikabi, close to the urban square I'm at. Follow my signal at once!"

I prepared my rockets for ignition. "Benitsubasa." I directed.

"I've got him, Nathan." she replied.

"Good. We'll need him in case we'll have to power up Musubi or Kusano." I said as I leapt off of the building and immediately ignited my rockets to fly my way over to to that targeted spot.

'I hope it both is and isn't what I think it is.'

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

"Are you sure?" I asked as I took up my armor and put a gauntlet on.

The ghost of Alan Felix sat up against the table where my weapons were. He was not greyscale or all white, but he was transluscent. His clothes were all a blazing white though, but his skin and hair color were the same. He looked to me with a very sure look. "I'm positive, Nathan. You're destined to do this." he answered.

I put on another gauntlet, and my leg plating. "Alan, c'mon. I've been having strange dreams for about a month and a half now. Like when you were depicted in that asshole devil form." I argued.

"Or when you met Midasu. Or Kagayaki. Or Tsukiumi." he retorted.

I put on my other leg's plating. "You give an excellent point, bro." I agreed. "But I'm not disconfident about MY ability to help these kids in their struggle with Minaka or that viper, I'm worried about Minato. I know as a matter of fact, I **will** need his help and I absolutely **will** end up endangering him." I admitted as I put on a boot and looked at him meekly and worriedly.

He closed his eyes and scoffed, smiling while he did so. "Nathan, you're gonna do fine. You have my sword, and our technology to back you up with that claim."

I squinted and put on another boot, my face smeared with irritated and argumentive confusion. "If you recall, Karasuba sliced through my helmet like it was paper." I responded.

He grinned competetively. "That was a thinner suit of armor, though. Your actually useful suits will be finer against her nodachi."

I smiled at him. "Okay, okay, you're the world's greatest genius." I complimented in an annoyed tone.

"Master—" Akitsu called out before I reacted.

Alan and I both shouted out, "Gwaaaaaaaahaaaauh!" in paralyzed fear.

She didn't even grimace or flinch. All she did was close her eyes and bow a little bit. "I'm sorry for frightening you, Master. I've come to inform you that we are all ready when you are."

Alan vanished and I put on my torso piece of my armor. "Oh, it's- uh... It's fine." I replied with a revitalized smile. "Oh, um, that reminds me. Akitsu, are you sure you'll be able to use that enchantment... thing...?" I asked, tapiring off into silent confusion.

She smiled, just a crack, and let mout a small giggle breath. "We call it a Norito. And I think I can, yes."

"Good. The last time you used it, I almost destroyed my garden and you were in a coma." I affirmed as I kissed her lips lightly. "Try to be more careful." I directed smoothly as I pulled away from her and put on my helmet and holstered my weapons to my back and my sides.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

I connected my visor to my scope from a beuilding that was about 50 meters from the site of the crash. As it turned out, I was spot on, as to what I was looking for. A young blonde girl with undeveloped features and a light blue with white highlights sailor suit was on the ground, having tripped from the resident force of that attack. She was blubbering and crying out as a young man was trying to help her up, telling her to "get up, we gotta keep moving" and whatnot. My eyes became quarters at the sight of this, for I finally found my target. The children were there. I got up from one knee and put my rifle away. "Target confirmed. It's them, the children." I announced over the comm as I held out my hand and I took out Muramasa.

Then I saw her. The veiled sekirei landed on her feet gracefully, exactly five meters away from them. My body began to pulse with an angry burst of hot blood, like the waking of a demon. 'That woman is going to take a dream from me.' I thought to myself as I felt Muramasa's metal heat up with bloodlight in my hand, even through my armor. 'That woman is seriously here... right now! I don't even know these kids, yet she's pulling this shit!' "The veiled sekirei." I growled over the comm.

_Click!_ "Nathan, let us take care of her." Tsukiumi's voice requested as I felt someone behind me.

I gnashed my teeth and gripped my sword harder as I noticed it. "Protect the children. Take them to their residence immediately." I ordered.

'With all of us at the house, the only one there is Shiina. And for all I know, she's unwinged and...' I pondered to myself as it hit me.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

We were at Maison Izumo, and I was in the room with Matsu, as she was searching for Midasu on her datanet. Before I left, she said, "Wait, you should be careful."

I raised a brow, holding my helmet in my hands. "Why?" I asked her. "It's just a search for a sekirei."

She shook her head and bopped my nose. "You clearly don't know anything. Unwinged sekireis are a really hot commodity in Tokyo." she lectured and scolded. "If you're looking for one, and you find one, there are people here that will have their sights on you."

I rubbed my nose. "Like whom?" I asked.

She gave me a serious look, and tension flooded and drowned us in the room. "Not all ashikabis are people like you. There are notorious men who have a lot of money, and a lot of sekireis." she warned. "They won't just leave you be. An unwinged sekirei is out there? They'll take it if the opprotunity is right."

I continued to listen and she continued to speak. "Be careful about an unwinged sekirei. And be careful about going back to your home with no helmet. They might see you, and know your face." she warned.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

'That night on the rooftop, when that woman unmasked me... and when Tsukiumi and I met. That means..!' I thought to myself as it became clear. I widened my eyes in a paralyzed realization and fear, as well as a blazing anger. I turned to the direction of my house. "Akitsu! Tsukiumi! You're coming home with me!" I yelled out loud.

_Click! _"Nathan!?" Tsukiumi's voice asked.

"We are under attack! The rest of you secure the children! Midasu and Kagayaki are coming with us!" I screamed in a panic.

I leapt as high as I could and I ignited my rockets to full blast, not saying a word, hardly even taking the time to breathe through my nostrils as I kept gaining more and more speed. _Click!_ "Nathan, who's going to attack our home? What would they want?" Midasu interrogated stressfully.

I squinted my eyes a little bit, the stress of the situation sharpening my senses and stiffening my muscles in my biceps and foreceps. "Everyone has their eye on Cable. And they'd know Shiina is at my house. Unwinged. Surrounded by my technology." I answered as we neared closer and closer to the house.

And I saw them. A man with Kagari's hair and a black guise and a mask over his face to hide his identity from immediate recognition, and there was a rather fit looking man with sandy colored messy hair, a drawn samurai katana, and a black gi with a yellow scarf next to a boy with lighter red brown hair, a childlike and yet partially mature teenage look, and white noble fancywear. They appeared to be fighting, in my front lawn. Or they were about to anyway. I crash landed on my feet in front of the palace, Muramasa's blade blazing with my anger. I deepened my voice modulator on the microphone too my helmet speaker. "Alright then... whose idea was it for two sekireis and a child to tresspass on this property?" I interrogated as I took small, slow and yet initmidating steps to them.

The blackened garbed sekirei to my right by view looked like he had nothing to fear, and sword wielding sekirei man to my left by view looked at me with a look of analysis. The boy simply made a pompous face of irritation at me. He stepped out and stomped his foot. "What is the meaning of this? How dare you call me a child in such a disrespectful-?!" she spoiledly demanded of me before I interrupted him.

All it took was a small little half swipe towards the ground with all of my force in my muscles, that's all. That gesture alone made a burst of red light erupt from the ground like an energy land mine, underneath their feet. The sekirei was swift though, he grabbed his ashikabi, the boy, and leap backwards a couple meters before that energy discharged. Once it was done, in under 5 seconds when all was quieter, I answered him with, "Be quiet, boy. Or I'll indulge in my desperate desire to hang your heads from Teito Tower like little festival orniments."

The sekirei sneered at me unpleasantly. "We came for the sekirei. 107, Shiina." he told me.

"Then you came for a blade in your neck." I retorted as I took stance. "She is under my protection."

Then the black-garbed sekirei chimed in. "Technically, she's under-"

"Comment and I shall personally kill you and experiment on your remains. I am **that** pissed right now, and I have the firepower to actually do it." I barked to him.

The sekireis I brought as backup landed all around next to me. The boy smiled and said, "Now, now, let's not get all hostile here. Perhaps I'd introduce myself." he gestured to himself. "I'm Hayato Mikogami-"

"And I'm the guy who doesn't give a living shit, whilst also wanting you go screw yourself and get off my lawn." I interrupted more. "Ladies, please drive them away."

Seconds later, ice, water, light and darkness fell upon Mikogami and the sekirei as they kept fleeing from my yard. I was panting from all of the stress on my muscles and my mind, and I put Muramasa in its hilt as I activated my comm. "Status report." I instructed.

_Click!_ "Red to Cable, she's gone. The veiled sekirei was taken from us, by some bimbo in red who claimed to be number 3." Benitsubasa's voice answered. "I'm sorry, I'll be more-"

"You're good enough in combat as is." I snapped. "The children. Are they alright?"

Silence for a few seconds, but it was deafening. 'I was stressed out about this powerful nightmare that had plagued me for one night, and then some kids' lives were at stake. They'd better be okay.' I scolded myself. _Click! _"Gone. They were Haruka Shigi and Kuno. But they disappeared, along with Musubi and Minato, Kusano as well." she responded apologetically. "We were too focused on the veiled sekirei, I'm sorry. I'll accept any punishment-"

I smiled cheerfully and screeched out in victory. "Thank god! Oh, jesus, they're safe!" I cried out.

_Click!_ "They...are?"

I took no time in my response. "We can trust Minato. Come home, girls. Haruka Shigi and his sekirei are Minato's responsibility now, he has dibs. Mission success."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

I looked at my reflection through the red blade of Muramasa, my face filled with the purest paint of relief and easy going attitiude. I actually smiled to myself and chuckled. "I went crazy over a couple of kids, and Minato got dibs when he saved them. Sekireis make me go nuts, aparrently. " I said aloud.

I heard a knock on the door to the artifact room, which I was inside. "Come in." I called out as I put Muramasa away.

The door opened slowly and Benitsubasa walked through the doorway slowly and nervously, as if each step nearly crippled her, and she walked over to me. She looked everywhere but at my face, looking guilty and apologetic. "Nathan..." she started before she became silent.

I didn't like this, her red-pink eyes always radiated the hunger for excitement, the thrill of fighting alongside me. But now she was all sad and gloomy, like she failed me or something bad happened. I gave a look of concern as I held her shoulder softly. "Benitsubasa? Why are you so sad?" I asked her.

She still didn't look at me directly, and she was still silent. 'This isn't good.' I pondered to myself. "Are the cookies gone again? That was Midasu's-" I began.

"She tried to take you away." Benitsubasa interrupted.

I was silent, and I tried to look into her eyes, but they weren't looking back to me. "Who?" I asked.

Benitsubasa grimaced. "The veiled sekirei. She tried to take you away from us. I hate her... And I let her get away." she growled, both admitting her feelings and punishing herself.

I sighed and closed my eyes, then I opened them back up to look at Benitsubasa, my tone as serious and yet warm and comforting as possible. "Benitsubasa, she will never get me. Nothing in this world will ever take me away from any of you. The phrase is 'now and forever', and I plan on being with all of you. Now and forever." I assured to her.

Then the unexpected came. She finally looked straight into my eyes, and that did make me smile warmly to her. But then she started to release uncontrollable tears and she hugged me tightly with her superhuman strength, and she began to openly weep. "I was s-s-so alone! Nobody wanted me, everyone was-s-s scared of me..." she sobbed.

I held her tightly and comforted her. "You're not alone anymore... I promise you." I promised as we kissed deeply.

Her wings blazed in the room, and all of my crates of stuff began to spark up and come to life all around us, and some sort of semi-angelic singing came to life withing my ears, which invigorated me to keep kissing and loving Benitsubasa where we stood. Our kiss was long, passionate, deep, and full of movement with our hands and fluctuations with our bodies. After minutes of our passionate kiss, I pulled out of it and began to kiss her neck and nibble on her beautiful body.

That gave way to us making love, tapiring from what was an emotional outbreak and a very stressful mission.

Hours later, I was out on a walk over to Maison Izumo, trying to take a more slow and calm travel method this time. Muramasa was at my belt, but I didn't think that I'd need to use it. But just in case, I had to keep caution and my wits about me. "You've had quite the day, Nate." Alan's ghost commented as he began to stroll with me.

I kept walking and I smiled at the sound of my brother. "Though your company is pleasant, I find it unsettling that I'm talking to a ghost." I greeted.

"Well, we can't all be sane, can we?" he chuckled.

"True, too true." I agreed as I heard her.

"Yo, Nathan!" Yukari's voice called out as Alan vanished and Yukari came up to my left side.

I looked down to her and smiled greetingly. "Hi, Yukari."

She closed her eyes and smiled before she clutched onto my arm. "How're you doing, baby?" she asked.

My mind tensed up. " 'Baby'?" I asked.

She gave me a loving yet humored sneer. "Am I not allowed to call my boyfriend 'baby'?" she asked.

"Since when are we dating?" I asked.

"Since Minato told me that you don't have a girlfriend and... well..." she answered while tapiring off to her own thoughts.

'Oh jesus god, you're joking.' I heard myself. "You've had a thing for me this whole time." I said aloud.

She blushed and kissed my arm. "You're smarter than I thought, Mr. College Graduate."

"It was an art college, I didn't get a PHD in rocket science." I contradicted.

"Oh whatever, you're still smart." she argued.

I looked to her, and I took in how cute and beautiful she was. She was in a brown cloth sweater with a purple scarf around her neck. Even though it was almost summer, it was still unusually cold this evening. But even then, she was still looking good. I smiled and kissed her cheek. "You're buying me cookies." I joked.

She lightly hit my arm, playfully slugging me. "Oh whatever, you're buying me dinner!" she retorted.

We continued to play around and walk our way to Maison Izumo. The only difference was... well...

I was almost surely screwed.


	19. Planning

I came up to Maison Izumo's patio with Yukari in tow, the night was still young, crisp and clear. 'Hopefully Minato won't be stupid enough to tell Yukari about the Sekirei Plan.' I thought to myself. 'Pleeeeeeeeease don't be dumb enough to speak of the Sekirei Plan.' I begged Minato in my mind. "Is something wrong, Nathan?" Yukari asked as she looked up at me in a cute, nearly seductive concern.

'Damn, she's so freakin' cute!' I thought to myself. Then I smiled in a revitalized way, and winked to her. "I'm fine, trust me." I assured. "Just be warned, he's living with my neice and his girlfriend."

She widened her eyes a little bit before she started to grow this devilish and dangerously excited expression. "Oooh hoo hoo! Interesting!" she cackled as I saw this demonically hungry aura begin to manifest all around her.

I closed my eyes and sighed. "Chill yourself, Yukari. Or no commission discount."

She became broken from the train of perverted thoughts that she was on and she burst into a mood of stress and tensity, almost too brazen and comedic to ignore. "Oh, come on! You're gonna make me pay a thousand yen for a commission?" she cried out.

"If you keep misbehaving, yes." I answered as we came up to the door. "Now do me a favor and try not to-"

The door opened and I found Kagari begin to walk out before he saw me. He was wearing a formal suit with a black overcoat over his white button up shirt and black slacks. Usually, I'd be ready to get into a fight with him or possibly kill him, but then I recognized something. I visualized him with a black mask over his mouth and nose and an all black sekirei watchman-like suit, like the sekirei who defended my house from Mikogami's sekirei. Upon this realization, I smiled gleefully and energetically. "Hey, man!" I greeted.

Kagari looked at me confusedly, but then the confusion melted into that smoldering fear that overcomes you when someone learned your darkest secret. "Hey... Nathan..." he greeted carefully, like he was navigating a landmine field.

Then I saw his eyes shift to Yukari at my side, and I noticed that she liked what she saw in him, because she was giving him that cute smile. "You two know each other?" Yukari asked.

I grinned appreciatively to Kagari. "Boy, do we."

Kagari began to smile a little bit, as if relieved that I didn't show any harmful intent to him. "Yeah, we know each other. My name's Kagari." he answered Yukari.

She smiled more to him. "You going anywhere?" she asked him.

Then, that hit me. 'If she goes with Kagari, then I won't have any real problems with Akitsu or the others.' I thought to myself as I smiled to myself.

"I'm the manager of a nightclub-" he began.

Yukari lit up. "I could go to a nightclub!"

Kagari gave me a look that said, "I'm kinda reacting to her, should I?"

I responded with a look that said, "Go for it, it'll help us both out."

Kagari looked back to Yukari and smiled with his eyes closed. "Then you'd like to come with me?" he offered her.

Seconds later, she was off with the silvery haired "prince charming" to a night club, and I was walking into Maison Izumo. Thankfully, I had no armor or helmet on, so that cleared up the rule Miya had for whenever I'm over there. I popped my neck a little bit and stretched a muscle out to release some strain. "Minato! Yo, buddy, just thought that I'd thank you for helping me with—aiy!" I called out and ended with a groan as I hit my foot on a piece of furniture. " Ow ow ow! Aaaaaaaahhaaaaaowie!" I cried out.

Minato walked into the room I was walking through when I hit my foot, but the pain from the abrupt tripping just subsided upon his entry. I smiled weakly as I saw him. "Sorry for the noise, I kinda hit my foot on something." I apologized

He smiled and closed his eyes, laughing a little bit. "Even with all kinds of sekireis, you're still as clumsy as always." he commented as we walked our way to the living area close to the backyard.

"Ah, c'mon, it's purposely placed to trip me." I complained.

We laughed a little bit as Musubi and Kusano joined us. Upon seeing me, Musubi lit up in that cute and funny way that she usually did. "Oh! Hi, Nathan!" she greeted.

I smiled and waved a bit. "Hi, Musubi. Thanks for helping out with the children this afternoon. I kinda had my hands full with another matter as well." I thanked.

Minato gave me a lesser than tense look, but he was serious all the same. "Yeah, I kinda thought you'd be mad at me for acting out in your mission." he admitted.

I looked back to him. "No way. Job well done, man. The fact that **you** rescued them with Musubi and Kusano means that you have dibs with them now. You've gotta help them in whatever they're gonna try and do."

Minato really became tense now. "They want to escape from the capital." he told me.

I was silent for several seconds, in disbelief of what he told me. All I could do was laugh a little from my disbelief in the situation. "Okay, I know I'm gullible, but come on. That really scared me. I thought you said those kids wanted to try and escape, drawing the attention of every ashikabi here in case cookoo cuchoo Minaka decides to make the 'game more exciting'." I summarized.

They both continued to be silent. "Nathan, I'm telling the truth." Minato finally said.

Realizing this, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath in and out. "Well, I assume you three will need my help with the kids." I said.

Musubi nodded, and Kusano did too. Looking at Minato, I smiled. "Alrighty then, I'll help. You got dibs anyway."

Minato gave me a wide-eyed look of surprise. "What?" he asked.

I smiled excitedly to him. "I'm gonna help you with Haruka Shigi and his sekirei's escape."

"That quickly?" he asked.

"Did I studder? Or is it that you don't want to be publicly associated with Cable again?" I began to interrogate as a demonic aura of anger and disapproval began to shroud us, pouring out from me.

He scrambled in place a little bit. "No! No no no-ho! Go ahead, help us out!"

I smiled gratefully and wamly, and everything became all happy again. "Thanks, broseph."

Musubi and Kusano sorta tried to hide when I got angry, and then they fearfully began to cheer as they knew I'd definitely help Haruka and Kuno. Then my iPhone-5c rang out the beginning instrumental background for the Keane song, "Looking Back", featuring K'naan. I took it out of my pocket to reveal that on the caller ID on my screen, there was a picture me kissing Akitsu's cheek while she had one eye closed and a smushy face from my kiss. It said in white letters, "Akitsu Felix." I smiled intently. "If you'll excuse me, Minato, I have to take this."

Seconds later, I was outside and I answered the phone. "Hey." I greeted.

"Hi, Nathan. Where are you?" she asked.

"I'm at Maison Izumo, with Minato and his two sekireis." I answered, pacing my way back and forth along the yard.

"Of course. Would you like me to come over there?" she asked.

I smiled and my heart began to rise. "You and Tsukiumi should come over here. I need to discuss something with you two, since you are my strongest sekireis, I need to give you council."

"Very well. We will be there soon." she affirmed as she hung up the phone.

I looked up to the moon in the crisp and freshly clear sky, and smiled as I took out Muramasa and took a deep breath in and exhaled. "Muramasa." Miya said to my side.

I turned to my left to find Miya standing in front of the patio exitryway, dressed like a priestess as usual, and with a wooden handled and scabbarded samurai katana; made to look like a big wooden hard practice sword. "That's a legendary blade, you know." she told me.

This was unusual, she wasn't smiling and being all nice like she usually was. She was wearing a serious and yet completely, unnervingly calm expression among her attire as a priestess look. Her fiery iris pink-ish eyes blazed through the night's shadow, like they were little windows to the small sun's pyre within her. Her purple hair flowed in the wind and was kept back and up like usual. Looking to her, my smile melted into an ordinary facial expression. "Oh boy." I commented in anticipation.

"I don't participate in the sekirei plan for a reason, Nathan Eugene Felix." she continued. "Why does someone with Muramasa fight the sekireis and ashikabis alike?"

I sighed in response. "Because Akitsu is a sekirei, and my best friend here is an ashikabi. I will do whatever I must in order to help them."

"But if they weren't involved?" she asked.

"Then I guess I wouldn't be here. And since when are you such a huge player in the sekirei plan?" I interrogated in response. "What are you, the legendary swordmaster of this little shindig?"

She did nothing more than maybe show a glint in her eye before she drew out her blade from the wooden hard practice scabbard. "What if I am? Are you suggesting a challenge?" she asked defensively.

I took stance. "Whoa, whoa, hold on. I'm not going to challange you, the last woman I met with a sword was enough of a viper as is." I spat out.

She made a face as if she caught onto something. "You refer to number four. Karasuba, correct?"

"Yeah." I answered. "You know her?"

We put our blades away. "She and I have known one another before, yes." she answered. "But I can't tell you the details."

I shrugged my shoulders. "Fair enough." I said as I felt a very pleasureable presence.

I turned my head to find Akitsu and Tsukiumi landing on their feet. I smiled and scratched my head. "Sorry to make you two come over here. I hope you don't ...mind..." I sputtered as I saw something peculiar.

I brushed my eyes down to find that under her white kimono-like clothing, Akitsu was wearing no panties or any underwear. I smoothly facepalmed myself as I asked, "Akitsu, why did you come without underwear?"

She looked down, as if out of absent mindedness. "I must have forgotten." she answered.

Tsukiumi smiled smugly and crossed her arms. "Hah! 'Tis **I** who win the contest of modesty." she boasted.

I looked to her and smiled humoredly. "Since when is there a modesty contest?" I asked.

Angrily and immediately, she unleashed a water celebration on me and knocked me to the ground. "**Since I said so, thou simpleton!**" she yelled out, booming.

I slowly grumbled and got up from that. "Okay, I get it. Geez, Tsukiumi." I complained as I shook my hair free of the moisture. "Not very nice."

After those words, Tsukiumi hugged tight to me, making a pouty face and pressing my chest to hers. "I am sorry, Nathan. How can I makest thou feel better?" she asked and apologized.

I smiled, intent on telling her exactly what she could do to make me feel better, but then I remembered Miya's little rule of the house. 'No illicit activities are allowed at Maison Izumo.'

"I'll tell you later." I said to her with a small kiss as I held her hand and walked my way to the house. "We've kinda got a lot to talk about."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

We were all silent in the dining room, where the table was. We were all sitting there, Minato and I were at the heads of the table, and to either side closest to me were my sekireis, and closest to Minato were his two. Tension was nearly drowning us, for he and I had barely just finished telling Akistu and Tsukiumi about our plan for Haruka and Kuno. Tsukiumi looked as if she was smoldering with anger and disapproval, but Akistu simply looked like she'd agree with me no matter what I said about this matter, although she looked concerned in her eyes. All the same, the reaction wasn't all too positive. I simply sat there, not wanting to really even speak or move; in order to avoid igniting an emotional or even physical outbreak of mutiny or violence. 'Okay, now what ne-' I thought. "So, er, Tsukiumi?" Minato asked.

'Oh shit, no.' I gasped to myself. 'Boy, you just killed yourself.' Tsukiumi beamed a glare to Minato, barking out, "What, monkey?!"

Minato flinched back a couple feet, his face scrambled with fear. Akitsu and I only did so much to turn our vision to her, while Kusano squeaked and hid under the table, and Mususbi sped over to comfort her ashikabi. "Tsukiumi." I called out to her sternly.

She looked back to me, her eyes flaring with a lapis lazuli blaze of fury. My expression yielded no fear in the face of this, only concern and some disapproval. "Walk outside with me." I ordered as I got up to my feet.

Seconds later, she and I were outside, and I stood fairly close to her. We were looking at one another, our gazes unmoving and unrelenting towards one another's eyes. It was a small while before I decided to ask, "Are you that disapproving of our plan?"

She scoffed and looked away from me, closing her eyes and turning her head. "'Tis suicide. This Haruka Shigi and sekirei number 95 that thou art so intent on helping will die, along with Minato and his sekireis." she answered with a vigorous burst of attitiude.

I raised a brow. "I'm American, not retarded, Tsukiumi. You only care so much for the other ashikabis, or their partners." I told her.

She was silent. "This is about me. You think I'll die on this mission, don't you?" I kept asking.

"And what if I do? What if I'm worried about the only human I love, the only man I love, the only **one** I love, dying in vain for the escape of an upstart and his powerless sekirei?" she barked angrily at me.

"I won't die. Nobody will, for all of us are going to help them." I said to her. "I am more than strong enough to do this, imagine how we'll perform with all of us at the helm."

"We shall need more than just power, Nathan. Twill take a masterful strategem, a plan of battle, **many** of them just in case each one fails." she argued.

"Then we will **make** them, Tsukiumi. Can't you have enough faith in me to know that I can fight alongside you, like a proper ashikabi?" I asked seriously.

She stared into my eyes for a few seconds, then she closed her eyes and sighed before turning away. "I don't want you to fight." she admitted. "No matter how much technology you have at your disposal, no matter what weaponry you have, you're still a human. Your body is more fragile than ours."

"Tsukiumi...? But I'm always fine, every time." I argued.

" A sekirei is still supposed to protect an ashikabi, no matter how strong either one is." she retorted. "And the only one who hast ever protected you was Akitsu."

Then it all became clear. I saw that Tsukiumi thought that Akitsu was the one I cared about and that she was only the runner-up or something favoritistic like that. She thought that unless she fought noticably, she was useless and worthless to me. Mortified by this, I frowned, speechless and in a small open mouth gape. "Oh, no. No, no, no, Tsukiumi." I spuddered sadly as I began to tremble in a small emotional outbreak. "I... I didn't..." I started.

She turned back to me, her eyes gleaming out concern. "Nathan...?" she asked.

I looked down to my feet. "...All I wanted was a family." I spat out. "I moved away from America because all of my family would, in some way, refer the death of Alan Felix back to me. I was broken, my heart shattered. So I moved here, somewhere completely new. I wanted to finally make my own family and forget about the past. And I met my best friend, and I met Akitsu..." I continued as I began to sniff. "And now I have a family that I made, and a house big enough for it. But now I learn that apparently some sort of pyramid complex? That it has been for a long time?" I asked as I looked back up to her and I began to cry out bitter tears.

With Akitsu in this, it would've been different. She's seen me cry before, she's been with me since the beginning. She was my first and she is my strongest, and she and I have been healing each other since day one of my involvement in the Sekirei Plan. She would have hugged me, made it snow, and we would make love until my negativity was gone. But Tsukiumi looked as if she felt guilty and hurt by the fact that she made this happen. Tears kept rolling and flowing down my face, and I felt worse and worse by the realization. My breathing became harder and my throat becan to dry up along with some itchiness of my eyes. "Nathan-" she began.

"I hurt you, and I probably did the same to the rest of my sekireis-" I kept lamenting as she pressed me to her tightly.

"I love you, Nathan. You are the one person I love, and I will do anything for you." she interrupted as she kept holding me.

"Then let me fight with your blessing." I replied as I pulled away and held her shoulders. "I need it, please."

We kissed long, deep, and passionately. Her wings blotted out the shadow and light from the moon all around us, and I held her back with my arms wrapped around her as we kept kissing deeper. It took a few minutes for us to finish and we finall agreed on the fact that I'd still fight alongside my sekireis before she used her water to wash my face of the damage done by tears.

We walked in and sat back down in our places as I lightly pounded onto the table with my hand. "We'll take some time to train, then we'll help Haruka and Kuno escape." I announced to them all. "That is our final plan, is that clear?"

There were no disagreements. We all agreed on that plan.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

I walked into the shower room and immediately turned on the hot water. I stood under the stream of hot, comfortable water and I began to simply take a sponge and a bar of soap and wash myself. 'Okay, so we'll need to do this in a few days. In the meantime, I'll have to train with the ladies and do all of that business.' I planned to myself as I felt another presence enter the shower room. Without turning around, I simply continued to wash myself and I said, "Is there something I can help you with?"

There was nothing but silence for a small while, then I felt a soft and warm sensation upon my back, similar to a woman's hands. After a split second of pondering, I found that it **was** a woman's touch. "I thought I could wash your back." Midasu's voice suggested.

I smiled and handed her the sponge. "Hi, Midasu. I really would appreciate it." I answered to her suggestion as I felt a softer, squishier feeling upon my back.

It didn't take me any time to figure out that this new feeling was her soapy, suds covered chest upon my back. She leaned in and kissed my ear, whispering, "I never said I'd use the sponge."

Upon instinct, I took my free hand and I fingered her from a more backwards form, since she was behind me. She gasped out and let out noises of pleasure as we continued to bathe in such a sexy and pleasureable way. She began to lick and suck on my ear and my neck as she kept rubbing her breasts on my back and she began to jerk me woth both of her soft and feminine hands and I continued to finger her harder and deeper. I groaned from pleasure, and Midasu's moans became filled with more vigor, more excitement and more pleasure. I felt her hips move to get my three fingers deeper into her supple, beautiful body as I felt an unreleased pool of orgasm building up inside of her, and my muscles began to tighten up.

As we had our orgasms with one another, I kissed her deeply and lovingly, her wings of darkness and blackened fire burst from her back. We pulled away from eachother, only being connected by a thin string of saliva, as we looked into one another's eyes. I smiled to her and kissed her again. "You're so awesome, Midasu." I complimented as I began to suckle upon her chest, and that gave way to us making love within the shower room.

Overall, the night became really eventful, and the days ahead were doubly so. Each one more exciting than the last.


	20. Training and Oriha

**Author's note: We're almost at the end of Destinations part 1. About 2 or 3 more chapters until the end, meaning I'll go into season 2 after this, or maybe I'll add a few off-season chapters; like DLC stuff or something. I'm going to be doing two stories back to back after the final chapter of part one. Remember to leave reviews of your opinions and other stuff and remember to check out the fics. Hellfire and Obsidian out.**

"Training?" Oriha asked me.

All of us were gathered in my training/gym area, and I was wearing nothing but slightly baggy black athletic pants and agile combat boots. They were all in similar black athletic shirts and slim athletic pants and shoes. Some of them had their hair done up in a tail or a bun or something to keep it from getting all over the place and in their way. I smiled. "That's right, Oriha. We're training." I answered as I picked up a bottle of water. "We're all going to be developing new fighting techniques for the upcoming battle, and I'm going to be your trainer."

I poured some water on my head and ruffled it all through my locks of hair. I smiled in vigorous excitement and took stance. Upon each of my hands were black pugilist fighting kenpo equipment gloves. "Come on, babies! Gimme your best shot." I taunted.

They simply stood there, befuddled by my sudden show of excitement. "Why would we attack you?" Oriha asked me with her finger on her chin.

"Thou art not protected by armor, nor armed with a weapon. 'Tis unfair." Tsukiumi chimed in.

I scrunched my face in disapproval. "I **was** going to take you girls on a date based on your performance with me, buuuuut, wellll..." I said.

They all jumped straight up in place out of the sheer surprise of my offer, and then they all cried out, "Get him!"

I smiled and sharpened my senses, taking stance. "That's right, baby girls, come and get me." I taunted to myself.

And it began. Katsuragi and Benitsubasa, my unarmed fighting sekireis, were the first pair to lunge at me. Katsuragi was in the air, preparing to sweep kick me with her foreleg from the left; whereas Benitsubasa's fists were coated with her red light energy corona as she was about to energy punch me with both of her fists. I used both of my arms to block the Red Sekirei's attack, but it hit me with the force of a runaway sledgehammer, and I grunted in aggrivating pain. "Grrrraahhhh!" I growled out as I retaliated and I unleashed a salvo of punches, which she was quick enough to block with her arms. But that was exactly what I wanted, and I showed that as I punched her shoulder with all of my force, and as I saw her arms disband ad I heard her groan in sharp exasperation, I punched her gut like a rocket's force and I quickly and efficiently picked her up over my head and then slammed her down upon her back. Remembering that she wasn't my only sparring opponent, I turned swiftly to my left and caught the ankle of what would be a sweep kick to the side of my head ; and as I did so, the momentum of Katsuragi's attempt of an attack slid my feet. I smiled, and blew a small kiss to her as I spun her 360 degrees over my head and slammed her onto the ground. Looking down on them, I saw that they weren't hurt, just lying on the ground and panting out of sudden exhaustion. Seeing this, I smiled in relief. "That's two." I said to myself.

Then came my other opponents. I leapt into the air and gyrated my arms and legs in an inverted flip in order to dodge the incoming sawblade gears and projectiles of light mixed in with whipping tendrils of living shade. I landed upon my feet with a pound and faced Oriha, Midasu and Kagayaki. I smiled and took a cranelike stance. "Don't think this is unfair, ladies. This will be-" I said before I heard my phone ring on a bench a few feet from the big arena mat we were on. I groaned and walked over to it. "Lemme get this."

I picked up my phone and saw a pciture of Yukari and I standing together, holding ice creams and pressing faces to one another. The ringtone was a standard digital ring, no song was made to loop back for a ringtone customization for her. I slid the phone's answer button on the screen to answer the phone. "Hello?" I asked.

"Goooood morning, baby boo!" Yukari's voice cried out in greeting, her voice all glazed in joy and cute affection. "How was your night? Is my brother doing okay?"

I smiled and closed my eyes, sighing. 'Typical Yukari.' I said to myself. "He's doing very well, Yukari." I answered. "And my night was eventful."

"Oh! How exciting! You won't believe about **my** night!" she began to vent out to me. "So apparently..."

She began to tell me all about how she and Kagari began to spend most of their night at the club that he worked at, and they had a few drinks and whatnot, but Yukari wasn't drinking any alchohol (at least I hoped not). And after a whole night of partying and clubbing and whatnot, she went on to her main point. "... and then he kissed me."

I widened my eyes. "He kissed you?" I asked in alarm. "So you're an ashikabi now!?"

She was silent. "No, I'm not cheating on you. I'll let this slide because you're American, but don't make up words to accuse me of cheating on you." she answered, as if trying to deny a secret.

"Yukari, I'm not accusing you of cheating on me. I don't even know if the word Ashikabi actually means anything in english." I argued.

"I don't either." she chimed in.

"Exactly." I agreed swiftly. "But understand that I am **not** someone that you want to hide this from. So I'm going to ask you in english this time. Are. You. Kagari's. Ashiabi?" I sternly and seriously asked her.

She was silent once more. "If you know about it, that must mean you are too." she answered.

I let out a breath, and I could tell she heard me. "Yes, I am. I have eight sekireis living with me." I admitted to her.

She was quiet even more, and I became fearful of breaking her heart. "So when you told me that Minato was with his girlfriend and your neice, you really meant that he was with his sekireis?" she asked.

"Yeah." I answered her.

"Oh, well that all makes sense!" she replied with joy.

I should have fallen down like Minato usually does, whenever something throws you off so much that you quite literally fall down. "It makes sense?"

"Yeah! Explains why you're usually so busy! And why Minato never really talks to me on the phone any more! You two are ashiabis! Are you in some club with your women?" she asked as she gasped. "Are you guys having sex parties?!"

"**No we are not having sex parties with our sekireis!**" I screamed out hysterically.

"Okay, okay, geez mister scream-my-ass off-at-my-girlfriend." she chided.

"You are **not** my girlfriend! We are simply ashiabis that are very close!" I kept going.

"And romantically inclined. I'm your girlfriend." she argued.

"God dammit, my sekireis would tear you apart if you try to-" I began.

"And **my** sekirei would kill you if you hurt me. Look, I don't need to be your girlfriend, but whether you like it or not, I love you just as much as they do." she snapped.

I was silent as I looked to my sekireis, standing on the mat and looking at me. I knew then that they heard my entire conversation and were still listening, but they didn't look all too angry. Akitsu was looking monotonous like usual, but her eyes gleamed out with a sense of approval with my situation. Tsukiumi looked like although she didn't like having to compete with an ashikabi to gain me, she knew that since she had a sekirei already, she was nothing to worry about. Midasu and Kagayaki simply smiled intently at me, and I could already tell that they were thinking of nasty ways that they could "share" me with Yukari Sahashi. I closed my eyes, sighed and smiled before I looked up at Oriha to find that she was smiling and winking at me gleefully. "I love you too, Yukari. But I hope you know that you'll have **plenty** of competition with my family of sekireis." I replied.

"You mean your harem." she corrected.

"No, family." I argued.

"Harem."

"Family."

"Harem." she said more slowly.

"Family." I said, following suit.

"Harems consist of multiple women that you sleep with." Yukari argued in her logos. "How many of them have you screwed?"

"I've only had sex with half of them, maybe five." I answered.

"Uh huh, you have a harem. You should at least have some time with the other three or four." she said to me.

"I plan to, today actually." I said as I noticed their impatience. "I'd better go, I was actually training with them until you called me."

She giggled. "I love you, boo."

"Love you too. I'll see you at Maison Izumo in two days." I gave farewell as I hung up on her.

I walked over back to the mat and smiled nervously. "Please don't kill me?" I begged.

Tsukiumi smiled and grabbed my face, squiching my cheeks and making my mouth open round and small like a fish. "Thou art damn right, Nathan. She shall have **very** much competition for you." she affirmed.

"Ehh heehh." I affirmed.

She kissed me deeply and went from squishing my face to simply brushing my cheek with her soft palm. When we were finished kissing, she began to walk awak a little. "Thou shalt take us for dates." she decreed. "As thou hst already stated, of course. Today thou shalt chose, and then I shall chose for thee."

I smiled in confusion. "What brought up this sudden burst of bravado?" I asked.

She turned her head to me and smiled with more confidence, almost challengingly so. "The fact that thou art devoted to all of us. Thou pleases me very well, now 'do' thy 'thing', as thou Americans say it."

I smiled and chuckled. "I suppose so, Tsukiumi." I agreed. "Well, since I'm only chosing today... Oriha, come on and let's get dressed. I'm treating you to a few things, Nathan style." I said to her.

Oriha immediately bounced up to me, almost face-level close. Her face shone with a giant cutie smile and glittering eyes. "Ohmygoshthisissoexciting! I wanna watch a movie and get a lot of candy and get a puppy!"

I smiled and kissed her forhead. "Anything you want. C'mon, today is Oriha day." I said with a grin of excitement.

XXXXXXXXXXX

The sun was already down, and we were both tired as we walked our way home. But the day was beyond fun and enjoyable. As soon as we left, we bolt our way to the nearest amusement park and rode every single ride there was, five times. We had lunch, a bunch of snacks from candy and food stands here and there, and then after all of that, we walked out of there with both of our arms filled with stuffed animals. Except for snakes, which she shireked and cried out about. Didn't really think that she'd be so afraid of snakes, but sure enough she had a phobia of 'em. But aside from that, we dropped them off at Maison Izumo so that she and I could see this recent hit movie that was about some sort of principle of love, and friendship and all of that business; with an evil father who had the main protagonist woman branded for murder, but she found this guy and they tried to run away together. But then there was a buttload of dramatic and combat scenes, and they actually had a "happily ever after" thing going for them. With the movie done, we also had this really huge dinner of the most expensive cooked sushi that I could buy for her. We might as well have walked out of the restaraunt with gigantic bellies that bubbled and hobbled around when we tried to walk. But yet, we didn't. After all of that, I also ended up doing a bit of last minute shopping for some more clothing for her. The mall time of which we were shopping ended as the sun finally set upon us, and we decided to go back to Maison Izumo and pick up everything.

And now we were finally heading home, our arms full of the stuffed animals and bags of clothing that were all collectively for her. Her face was glazed, almost radiating joy and a sense of giggly and drunken pleasure from having been treated to a fabulous day with her Ashikabi. I could tell, for she had a really cute smile on her face, almost too big to fit. Seeing this, I smiled and chuckled. "So, how was your day, Oriha?" I asked her.

She looked back and up to me, giggling and wearing this kissy face. "It was absolutely perfect, dear."

I laughed a bit. " 'Dear'? I'm sorry, are you and I an old married couple now?"

She giggled. "Not yet we aren't. But we **are** sharing a bed tonight."

"We are?" I asked.

"Of course, silly man!" she answered with a jolt. "Today is me day! That means tonight is me night too."

"Very well. I guess I'm sleeping in your room tonight then." I affirmed as we got home.

It wasn't even ten seconds, not even **five** seconds, before I heard the judgement fall upon me. "**Nathan Felix**!" Tsukiumi's voice boomed as she grabbed me by my shirt and pulled me close to her.

Her eyes blazed with serious fury like usual when she was in her hyperactive anger moments. "**Hast thou treated Oriha to a fine day like I commanded thee?!**" she interrogated like an angry goddess.

Fearing for my own life, I closed my eyes tightly and squealed out, "Yes ma'am!"

Slowly opening my eyes, I saw that she smiled at me more, satisfied by my performance with Oriha. She kissed me deeply, her lips showing very much appreciation. Her tongue was wrestling with mine and I could tell that in every way, not only was she starving for me, but she was also extremely pleased. When we pulled away, a thin string of saliva still connected us and she smiled warmly to me: which was new. "Good. Thou hast passed my test."

I was confused. "Test?" I asked.

"To make sure that you were telling the truth, and you love all of us equally." she explained. "Tomorrow, thou art taking Midasu and Kagayaki out." she decreed.

I blinked a couple times, befuddled by Tsukiumi's sudden burst of cunning and dexterity. My heart began to pound in absolute lust and desire, and my loins began to enlarge at this as well. "Dear sweet Christ, I love you, Tsukiumi." I admitted to her, submissively.

She gasped out a little bit, then she giggled and blushed a little bit. "American men are such ass kissers." she chastised with a kiss on the cheek. "Now go with Oriha to thy chambers, my ashikabi."

And thus I went to Oriha's bedroom with her and put down all of her stuff. "Well, I suppose that's just how Tsukiumi's going to play it." I said. "So what are we going to do...now...?" I asked, tapiring off into paralyzing silence as I turned around and saw Oriha dropping her clothing on the ground.

She was naked, and I saw more of her now than I did in all of the time I knew her. She had a rather petite womanly body, with smooth skin, and maybe C-cups, if not B-cups. I gazed upon her, with her hair let down and her dress all over the floor. She was blushing very darkly, and he couldn't even look directly at me. "Take a picture, why don't you?" she japed.

I spuddered a little bit. "I'm sorry, it's just that-"

"It's just that you've never seen me naked?" she asked. "I'm your sekirei, Nathan, I always figured we'd do this."

"Well, yeah, but-" I began as she unleashed her sawblade gears upon me and seared off my clothing.

Upon the sight, she smiled and winked at me. "You have a beautiful body, Ashikabi-kun." she complimented as she saw my loins begin to enlarge.

'Just take the compliment, and love her like she wants.' I told myself as I walked over to her and held her cheek softly, looking into her violet eyes. "You do too, Oriha. " I complimented.

She kissed the palm of my hand, and began to suckle on my fingers. Then she stopped and leaned in for a kiss. "I love you, Nathan."

"And I love you, Oriha." I replied as we kissed deeply, her wings bursting from her back.

That night we made love upon her soft cushiony bed, and not once did she let go of me in any way. Her body was smooth, tight, and beautiful. And from my hearing of her moans and cries of love, I was enjoyable to her as well. At the end of the night, love juice, sweat and all other things were all over the place, and my palace was filled with the love cries of a woman who lost her virginity. The night ended on the perfect note, and we slept heavily, snuggling tightly to one another.

And that was only the first of a few days. I could hardly imagine what the next day would be like. But in the end, it all lead to the end of the line. Sooner or later, I'd have to help Minato save Haruka and Kuno.


	21. The Fun Night

I held Muramasa in my hands as I took stance, firmly planting my feet into the ground of my back yard's soil. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, making sure to gain a lot of oxygen in my lungs before exhaling. "In..." I said as I exhaled and opened my eyes, tightening my muscles. "Out."

I took a vertical slash, and a line of speeding bloodlight chopped a stone collumn in half. A gust of an airburst and the sound of a tempest blowing up right there exploded from under my feet in reaction to my technique. I smiled and sighed as I put Muramasa away. "Note to self, get more collumns when you can." I said aloud as I turned my head to see her.

Akitsu was standing there, almost as if she was watching me in that monotonous way that she always did. She seemed like a living ghost or a master stalker in that regard. I chuckled in joy upon seeing her, which always made me happier than I would already be. Akitsu was the first of my sekireis, and by far the one who's stood by me the longest and possibly one of the few I haven't really taken into a serious battle. Although that fact suggests weakness, she's actually my strongest sekirei. Number 7, actually. One of the only sekireis that seem to be able to manipulate the weather. I smiled and put Muramasa away. "Good morning, misses Felix." I greeted with a kiss of the hand. "What's up, Akitsu?"

"Nothing, master. But we have guests." she answered.

I blinked a couple times in surprise. "Really? Is it Minato? Or maybe Seo... " I pondered as we walked into the house.

We kept walking and she kept up our conversation. "They are and ashikabi and a sekirei, but nobody on our side." she informed monotonously.

I nodded and popped my knuckles. "Then I suppose I should mask myself in case they're the enemy." I affirmed in a more serious and irritated manner. "Well, then again, they won't know who I am, so nevermind."

We walked down some halls and turns until we found the living room, and I saw them. Haruka Shigi and sekirei number 95, the blonde petite young lady named Kuno. I sighed in both relief and a slight manner of disappointment. Midasu and Kagayaki stood in front of them, ready to strike them down in case of danger or a threat level elevation in the room. I closed my eyes a bit and opened them. "Girls, stand down, stand down." I directed.

They walked away from them a bit, and Kagayaki looked at me in confusion. "I thought we were monitoring them because they were dangerous, and that was why we wanted them out of the city." she admitted lightheartedly.

I shook my head. "No, I'm trying to help them because Minato wants me to. Plus I think this will open up something new." I corrected her.

Haruka gave me a look. "Wait, you're the one who commanded these women when that sekirei attacked us?" he asked.

I looked back to him. "Yeah, but Minato's sekireis were the ones who carried you off. Not mine." I answered with honesty. "Name's Nathan Felix." I greeted as I offered a handshake.

He looked at my hand like it was probably dangerous, but he brushed past his suspicion and shook it anyway as he and Kuno got up. "I'm-" he started.

"Haruka Shigi. And sekirei number 95, Kuno. I know who you two are." I finished. "These are my sekireis. Numbers 7, 9, 25 and 26, 86, 101, and 105."

"Akitsu Felix. Number 7." Akitsu greeted.

Tsukiumi cluthced onto my arm and gave a look to our guests. "Tsukiumi Felix. Number 9."

"Midasu. Number 26." Midasu greeted as she got back to back in a pose with Kagayaki.

"Kagayaki. Number 25." she greeted as well.

Katsuragi held upon my other arm. "Katsuragi. Number 86."

Oriha waved and smiled. "Oriha Felix. Number 1-0-1." she sang out.

Benitsubasa gave them a condescending look of irritation. "Beitsubasa. 105."

Haruka and Kuno looked at us all in awe and in fear of angering us or making us want to be violent with them. "And you're friends with Minato?" he asked.

I chuckled and shook my head at that. "Are you joking, I helped him get into college, let alone his two sekireis." I answered. "He's my best friend in the world."

He smiled and let out a breath of relief. "Oh, thank god. Well, at least I know you're on our side." he said to me. "The discipline squad and a sekirei assassin kinda shook my faith in people like us." he admitted.

I became more serious as I frowned and asked him, "You're in trouble with the wierdos in that little squad?"

Before he could answer, Benitsubasa said, "The discipline squad is a group of sekireis that serve MBI. I'm decomissioned, so that leaves them with Haihane and Karasuba. The blue and black sekireis."

I widened my eyes in both anger and anticipation. "I'm gonna save your ass from Karasuba and Haihane?!" I asked him.

He stepped back and shuddered in a nightmarish fear of my gaze of anger. "Y-yeah?" he answered with uncertainty for his life.

"Master..." Akitsu chided in order to calm me down.

I heeded her voice and sighed in order to calm down. "Sorry... Got nervous." I apologized to him. "Oh well, my girls are powerful enough to bulldoze through anybody that gets in our way, especially because of the fact that we are many and they are weaker."

And Haruka was the one that felt the urge to argue. "But they have many more people on their side and they are heavily armed! They have helicopters and tanks!"

I chuckled. "Like war technology is gonna stop **me** from getting you out of the city. I'm gonna let you escape, not attack MBI tower." I retorted. "Those are two totally different things, on two **similar** but very differently scaled ratios. Seven sekireis, plus me makes eight, plus Minato's sekireis and Yukari and her sekirei. That's eleven people escorting you to the place where you'd escape. " I explained to him.

He looked at me as though I were insane, which signified that I proved his idea wrong. "You're fighting too?!" he asked.

"Of course I am, I can handle myself." I answered casually.

"Against armed soldiers and tanks..." he said in order to spark a tinge of second thinking in my head.

"Plenty well." I said.

"Alongside a battlefield full of sekireis and arms' fire..." he kept going.

"Yes." I responded.

"... even though you **aren't** a sekirei..." he kept on saying.

"For the love of shit, **yes**!" Benitsubasa groaned as she grabbed his shirt chest and pulled him in at face to face level. "He can handle himself while fighting with us to help **you two kids** escape the city! You're going to accept his help with Minato Sahashi, and dammit boy you're going to like it!" she growled.

I've seen this behavior before, but not from Benitsubasa in this regard. Tsukiumi can be this way and she does it with me and others I'm casual with. But Benitsubasa actually had something demonic and satanic about her when she scolded and laid it upon someone, her eyes glowed a bit red and her aura of energy lit up in a cloud around her fist that held Haruka. "My ashikabi is your ticket out of here, do you understand boy!?" she roared.

Haruka looked like he was either going to piss his pants or faint from the fear of her yammering and growling at him. "Y-y-yes, I un-d-d-derstand-d." he shuddered and pushed out in deep fear as she threw him down to the couch and Kuno held him with her hands to help him.

And like that, Benitsubasa looked at me and she became completely happy and loving, with a closed eyed smile and rosy cheeks. She actually giggled and her pearly teeth shone in her smile. "Did I do good, or did I do good?" she asked me.

I smiled and the two ladies let go of me as I walked over and held her cheek. "By god, you make me crazy." I answered as I french kissed her.

Tsukiumi scoffed. " 'Tis mediocre, but acceptable nonetheless." she both complimented and condescent upon Benitsubasa.

Benitsubasa gave her a glare of her firelit eyes. "Oh, I'm sorry, little miss wet and greedy." she snapped.

Tsukiumi got into her angry blaze mode as she grit her teeth and growled as they got face to face. "How dare you! Being indecent when guests are at our home! Have you no manners?!" she scolded.

She chuckled smugly. "Have **you** no sex appeal, when I get a kiss and you don't?" she asked in response.

I widened my eyes. "Giiirrrrrls, let's not say that. I'm willing to have sex with all of you." I tried to mediate as I reached for Muramasa.

"Aww, that's sweet!" Oriha chimed in.

That seemed to calm them down as they looked to me, both wearing expressions of competitive relief and affection. "...Thou art being rather blunt about it." Tsukiumi replied.

"I already knew **that**, baby." Benitsubasa told me.

I smiled a bit and walked out of that cluster to get my attention back upon Haruka and Kuno. "Look, I'm on your side, alright?" I offered him.

He looked a bit more relieved than determined, but he nodded and we shook hands once more. "And thus, the mission will be discussed later on." I said to him as I held out my phone.

The time read 3:35 p.m in white characters upon my screen. I smiled as I remembered something wonderful. "Tsukiumi and I have a date in about 25 minutes." I reminded her.

She bounced up a bit in alarm. "Thou speakest true! Make haste!" she hurried as she ran up a few halls like lightning to change into a good dress.

I chuckled as I did little more than snap my fingers. My nanofiber underarmor liquidated and formed and shifted into a black formalwear button up shirt, slacks and fine black shined boots. A coat and vest materialized upon all of that, and I popped my neck after the metamorphosis was finished. "Well then, I think we're gonna have to wait a while before we roll." I said.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Good evening, Nathan." Kagari greeted formally and politely, with a little bit of dislike in his voice at the sight of Tsukiumi. "And Tsukiumi."

I smiled and shook his hand. "Good evening, Kagari." I greeted in a friendly way as I handed him a small booklet of leather full of enough money to pay for dinner. "I'm paying for dinner, as we discussed earlier with Yukari."

He took the booklet and slipped it in his pocket, smiling friendly at me. "You're quite the gentleman, Cable." he commented.

We were in Yukari's living room, waiting for her to come out of the room she was changing and getting ready in. Tsukiumi was wearing a black, sparkling dress that had one shoulder fabric to hang onto her with, but her chest was still covered. Barely. And she wore black high heels to make her height seem even more amazonian than she already was. She crossed her arms and gave a look to Kagari, showing an urge to punch him. " Ahem!"

He looked coldly at her. "What is it?" he asked.

"Art thou simply going to ignore me? Nathan's wife?!" she demanded to know.

"Yukari, my ashikabi, is his girlfriend and Nathan is my friend. Since, you know, you **did**chew me out against his orders when I protected your house from Hayato Mikogami for half an hour." he replied.

"This will sound mean, but I stopped listening past 'girlfriend'." Yukari's voice called out as I saw her stride out of the room.

She wore a red shoulderless dress with a necklace of rubies and gold. Her pink lipstick and slightly red eyeshadow were complimenting her dress as she smiled and giggled while looking up at me. "Hello, handsome." she greeted.

I smiled warmly and took her hand in mine. "Well, don't you look fabulous?" I asked as I kissed her hand.

She blushed a bit and kisses my lips while holding my cheek all the same. She smiled as we pulled out of the kiss and she said, "Well, don't you taste fabulous?" ,in retort to what I asked her.

I chuckled a bit as we walked out of her house apartment and Tsukiumi handed me Muramasa. Her face was in more of a showing off mode, her smile pleasing to my eye. "Do you know any **other** method of travel for this?" she asked.

I took Muramasa in my hand and the blade glowed with delicate bloodlight. "I dunno, you could carry me as you leap from rooftop to rooftop. Kagari could do the same." I suggested.

"But puddin', wouldn't that ruin my dress and stuff?" Yukari asked.

I nodded. "Good point, sugar. Alright, alright. We'll try it this way, but don't blame me if people think we're comic book heroes or somethin'." I warned as I sank the tip of Muramasa's blade into the ground and a red light enveloped us in its soft and yet harsh warmth.

As we were being teleported to our destination, I felt Tsukiumi clutch onto me. Her grip was tight and firm, almost as if she were afraid to lose me in the light of Muramasa's embrace. 'She must think the transport is unstable, and that I'll fall into another dimension or something. Maybe I can remediate that.' I thought to myself as I stood still where I was in posture, but yet I turned my head and pressed my lips to hers. The kiss between her and I was not an ordinary kiss between a sekirei and her ashikabi, or two people who love one another. Our kiss was passionate and an exchange of trust between us, and as we kissed, I whispered to her, "I won't leave you, Tsukiumi. As long as you've got me, I'm not gonna slip away."

She kisses me a bit deeper before we nestled our noses together, embracively. "And I'll never let you go." she whispered back as we pulled away just in time for the final portation in the parkland area in front of a nice restaraunt.

I smiled as I put Muramasa away. "C'mon, let's take a walk to our destination. I made reservations this afternoon anyway."

Tsukiumi gasped, almost popping out of her dress, which already strained for dear life against her gigantic melons. "Thou made them?! Forgive me, for without thy second thinking I would have allowed us to go unprepared." she cried out.

I smiled and kisses her cheek. "Relax, Tsukiumi. You're not supposed to be perfect, you already are." I assured her as I held her in one arm and Yukar's hand with the other. "Now let's have some fun."

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Welcome home, Nathan." Shiina greeted, wearing a french maid outfit at the door.

I raised a brow in confusion. Tsukiumi's face, however, turned red like a tomato. A flustered red that almost radiated with the urge to explode like a high grade firework or a cherry bomb in your toilet. "Shiina, why are you in a maid uniform?" I asked, in a sense of morbid curiousity.

That's when Tsukiumi literally burst. "**Yes, why art thou in a french maid uniform?!**" she roared at the cute little silver haired sekirei.

She flinched back in fear of Tsukiumi's outburst, and then I saw her. Akitsu was also wearing a french maid's uniform. She looked as she usually did, with her straw colored hair and her monotone expression. But her eyes could never lie to me, and mine couldn't lie to her. I smiled in sexual excitement upon seeing her, and her eyes shone wih a combination of bashfullness and embrarrassment. Tsukiumi was about to **explode**. "A-Akitsu?! Explain thyself at once!" she yelled at her.

She looked to Tsukiumi and then looked back to me. "I thought... Nathan would like it." she admitted.

I smiled gleefully and my excitement only grew much bigger. "You're not wrong, I'll tell you that much." I affirmed as I got all over her business, rubbing and groping her. "Maybe we can have a little bit of-"

"**Nathan Felix!**" Tsukiumi shouted as she pounded my head with immense strength in her fist. "**Thou shalt not defile Akitsu!**"

She had her eyes closed, and was moaning softly in pleasure. I smiled and kissed her deeply, ignoring the pain of the giant welt on my head. "It's not defiling, is it?" I asked her, honestly.

She looked into my eyes, hers were gleaming with hunger and pleasure. "N-no~." she answered.

I smiled brightly. "Well then, that answers that!" I exclaimed as I picked her up and ran into our bedroom in the funniest way ever, as I actually said aloud, "Wubbubbwubbwuubwubb!"

And that night ended with... well, it ended with a lot of fun.


	22. The Day

The tension was like the stronger gravity of a small star, pulling down towards the planet and making my very bones creak from the strain. My joints and muscles were being pushed down by the very strength of a god itself, and I was hardly able to do anything but sweat and think about it. My eyes were unrelenting and unforgiving like gateways to hell, and my eyes were locked. The windows of Tsukiumi's soul were open to reveal her blue flames of death, anger and death poured like waterfalls from her eyeballs as our eyes were locked in combat, yet we were not even fighting. I kept a deathly pokerface upon my visage, smiling on the inside. "So, you're the last one, Tsukiumi." I said to her in observation.

" 'Tis true, Nathan. And thou art the last as well." she responded.

I smiled and took a slight look down, upon a set of cards. A 10, a Jack, a Queen and a King, followed by an Ace. A Royal Flush in my hands, my victory was assured. Tsukiumi, however, looked more desperate than ever seen from her. She was wearing her underwear only, and I still had my pants on, but I was shirtless. I smiled a bit, on the outside. "So, it all comes down to this." I summarized. "The final hand."

She smiled at me, with lesser than benevolent reasoning behind her rather raunchy smile. "Thou art a strange man, Nathan." she commented as she let down her hand.

An Ace, 2, 3, 4, and a 5. A straight flush. She smiled in victory. "Though my dignity is on the line, thou art assured for a loss!"

"You looked pretty desperate a second ago." I said as I put my hand down.

The second she saw the cards I laid down, the ultimately better hand I threw in order to obliterate her chances of victory, she screamed in a terror of facing the jaws of death itself. Her nightmares and her fears all came out in the upjumped requiem in the tunes of her vocal cords, the cries of ultimate defeat and loss. Her hopes and dreams were all dead, murdered before me. "Noooooooooooooo! I failed thee, sisters!" she screamed as she pounded the ground in almost Hollywoodese and dramatic pain.

You might as well have put a spotlight over her and turned off every light around us, maybe even plaid a melodramatic classical or orchestral score to all of it in the background, barely loud and quiet enough to hear both her sobs and the music. I smiled and laughed in humorous and entertained joy. "Honey, I think you did an excellent performance." I complimented.

She casually got up to her feet, and smiled at me smugly. "Of course I have. As I suggested, I am a great actress." she bragged.

I smiled in humor. "Yeah, but you act like this in real life too, sugartits." I chuckled.

She literally pounded my head so hard that I fell on the floor, belly down and faceplanting on the ground. "**I didn't ask for thine input!**" she roared.

I said nothing as I laid there, my face planted onto the ground. I only twitched my finger limply and yet speedily, feigning near death from that strike. Tsukiumi gasped and cried out, "Nathan! I'm so sorry, Nathan!" in deep fear that I was dead.

I groaned in a complaining way, and pushed myself up from the ground, and popped my neck. "Owwwch..." I groaned as I gave the scared Tsukiumi a smile and a chuckle. "I forgot that superhumans such as yourself are stronger than most people."

"Thou hast scared me to death, Nathan! I thought thou-" she began to babble at me.

"I'm not dead, in case you didn't notice." I told her. "Insane, maybe. But alive." I finished.

I walked my way to the door leading out of that room. "Now come on, I've got an appointment that I need settled by tonight. And I'm heading out today." I said to her as I opened the door and found Shiina standing in front of the door.

She was smiling at me, with sparkles in her cloud silver eyes, joy and adoration beaming out of her eyes. "Mister Felix." she greeted.

I smiled and sighed. "It's Nathan. Just. Nathan." I told her, like it was the fiftieth time.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Flashback:

I sat in the front yard at night, which I haven't done since Minato had entered college. I was drinking a beer, which was admittedly not the first one in the last half hour. Alchohol was in my system, three bottles worth of beer was churning in my stomach. I wasn't all plagued by the hick-ups and the inability to walk, but my mind was relaxed and whatnot. I was drunk, and there wasn't any nice or bad way to put it. I sat there, and I simply had a daydream.

In my daydream, I was standing in the middle of a wheat field, where the amber waves of sunset upon golden stalks waved and blew along with the winds that surrounded me. I held Masamune in my hand, the black blade reflecting pale orange light from the sun at the angle that I held it. The grip in my hand was welcoming to my hand, the firmness of my grasp upon the hilt was both comforting and helpful in my regard. The dream was apparent only by the fact that I heard the subtle tang and tease of an orchestral track, the peaceful toned melodies that only masters and musicians fit to serve barons and kings could play. I took a deep breath of the fresh and homely air, the aroma of hay and fresh stalk. A comforting smell to me. "Nathan?" I heard Alan's voice call.

'Yes?' I heard myself reply.

"Nathan." I heard him repeat.

'What is it?' I asked. 'Hello?'

"Nathan!" I heard Alan's voice shift into Shiina's soft yell, and my daydream shattered and I saw Shiina looking over me, standing up where I was sitting down.

She was wearing red plaid pajamas and slippers, both of which I knew as a matter of fact that I had Midasu and Kagayaki buy her. Her hair reflected the clouded moonlight a little bit, and I liked the look for her in the moonlight. "Are you awake?" she asked.

I blinked a bit and fixed my seating posture. "Yeah, I'm alright." I said to her, smiling.

She smiled back and asked, "May I join you?"

I gestured to the seat. "You already live here, mi'lady." I answered. "Of course you can."

So she sat down in the seat next to mine. "Your sekireis are asking what you're doing out here, you know." she informed me.

I giggled a bit. "Tell them I'm not unconscious if you go back in there." I responded.

She giggled with me. "I'll be sure to." she replied as she gave me a look of shy adoration. "So, I'm a little curious, Mister Felix."

"My name's Nathan, not Mister." I corrected. "And what're you curious about?"

She wasn't too blunt, but she was also not the most careful girl in the world. "Did you know that there's a sekirei that has the powers of killing things?" she asked.

"All sekireis can kill things. Even my healer, Kagayaki can use light to kill." I answered.

She shook her head. "No, no, I mean her powers are quite literally death. Plants, people, animals, and other things. Her powers are decay, and death." she elaborated.

I widened my eyes momentarily, in response to hearing that. "I have to say, neither knowing that or having that power myself is a little bit of a handicap for me." I commented.

She giggled before continuing. "But she doesn't like her power. It makes her a huge target for the big ashikabis of the south, west and east. And I'm kinda afraid of it as well." she admitted.

"Why would someone hate their own power? I don't hate what I have." I commented more.

"Death is her only power. That's it. She can't heal, or lift up giant things, or fly or anything like that. She controls death and only death. Her sister is the opposite, she makes plants and controls life and vegetation, and is an excellent healer." she elaborated.

"Kusano is the only sekirei that I know that can control plant life, and I didn't know she was a healer." I pondered to myself aloud. "Is this sekirei you speak of a little girl too?" I asked.

"No, she's about my age." she answered.

"Hmmm... Where is she now?" I asked as I took a drink and breathed out with a smile on my face.

She looked up to the clouded night sky and smiled, blushing a bit. "In the most wonderful place in the world, sitting next to the guy who saved her life from an assassination attempt. The guy is about your height, looks like you, has an affinity for the arts like you do... and he's the dreamiest man in her whole life." she confessed.

That's when we looked at one another, long and hard. Her eyes blazed out with affection and love, and I was equally attracted to her as she confessed to me what she was. It was number 107, a silver haired girl named Shiina, who was the sekirei of death. She made it clear that she wanted to be my sekirei and live here with me on a permanent basis, and plus I was drunk. I leaned in for a kiss, given the prompt to do so from her leaning into me first. I pressed my lips to hers, and her hands held my cheeks as we kissed.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Shiina smiled and nodded. "Okay, Nathan. Let's go, or we'll be late." she prompted.

"Where art thou going!?" Tsukiumi demanded to know.

I looked back to her with a common casual look on my face. "I was requested somewhere." I answered. "I'll be back later."

"And thou hath chosen Shiina for your companion?!" she asked.

Shiina held my arm, clutching onto it and rubbing her breasts upon it a bit. "He requested me simply because I'm new, Tsukiumi." she argued with her.

"Are we ready yet, Nathan?" Akitsu asked as she walked over to my other arm and clutched onto it like Shiina was.

"Can thou explain **that**, Nathan!" she roared.

"Akitsu needs to go out with me on a casual thing, too!" I whined.

Tsukiumi growled before crossing her arms and turning around. "Fine. But thou art sleeping with me tonight." she decreed.

I smiled and winked, though she didn't see it. "Fine, today's my choice day anyway."

I began to walk through the halls and into the living room until I stopped walking and stood in place, abruptly and surprising both Akitsu and Shiina. "What's up, Nathan?" Shiina asked.

I shot a look to Akitsu, one of intimidation and seriousness. " Akitsu Felix..." I grumbled as a near demonic aura burst to life in my eyes and in a corona around my skin. "Did you remember to wear panties this time?"

She nodded blankly to me. "Yes, Nathan, I remembered." she answered obediently.

The demonicism and scariness vanished and I smiled humorously. "Kk, cool. Now let's go." I prompted as they let go of my arms and we walked out of the house and into the front yard.

The blazing blue sky and the golden white sun that adorned her lifted my spirits more than they were already soaring. I smiled gleefully as I took a deep breath and held out my hand to the sky. I clenched my hand's grip, and Muramasa's hilt was in my hand at that exact moment. "Today's a great day for me, ladies." I told them as I stabbed the ground with my blade, and then came the pulling of my very atoms and a blinding flash of light.

Seconds later, the three of us were at our destination. Teito Tower stood in all of her glory over us, like a connection to earth and the heavens that crossed the horizon's invisible wall. I put Muramasa in its sheath and looked back to them, smiling warmly and excitedly. "Come on, ladies. Best not to keep our seers waiting." I prompted as I held each of their hands in my own.

They looked back at me, each was different. Shiina was almost silvery luminescent with her adoration for me. She wasn't the biggest smiling face I've seen, but her shy and nearly timid happiness was enough to tell that she was all good for it, whatever I wanted.

Akitsu looked as monotonous as always, and very rarely in my time with my first sekirei was there any form of a change of that. But her eyes could never lie to me. They sparkled with the most curious sense of trust and desire for me and my safety. Almost like a wife with her husband, both people being combatants everywhere they go. I smiled and chuckled as we began to walk. "Quit staring at me like that, or I won't buy you ice cream." I humorously chided as we entered the tower.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Hiroto Minaka will see you now." a tall man in a formal suit and intellectually styled glasses announced to us.

We were sitting on a couch in the waiting room, which was strangely devout to the gods and portrayals that Minaka has for the sekireis. All 108 of them, fluttering godlings in the city like little birds. Or so I kept hearing and seeing as I passed time by watching an informant documentary for any ashikabi to see in case they weren't properly told ahead of time. Shiina and Akitsu joined me as we walked with our guiding man to Minaka's office. "I take it Minaka's a very busy man?" I asked the guide.

"Oh yes, he rarely choses to make requests or appointments with people unless it's buisness or the sekirei plan." he answered.

"The director is always doing one thing or another, Nathan." Shiina informed me. "Why d'you think he called you here?" she asked in curiousity.

I pondered a bit, confusedly. I didn't think I was in any real trouble. 'I only messed with the discipline squad once in my time here, and they don't know that Nathan Felix is Cable. At least I don't **think** they know that... Or maybe it's business, I dunno. Keep your cool, Nathan. Just keep your cool with him.' I thought. "I dunno, Shii. Maybe it has something to do with my business that I told you about."

"Commission arts?" she asked me, like I was being enigmatic. "You're advertised already, or so Midasu already told me."

I smiled and shrugged my shoulders, still looking forward and keeping up with the guide. "Maybe the head of MBI wants a painting. We dunno."

The door to his office opened, and we walked through. It was truly the head of god's tower, I could see through the crystalline clear windows the entirety of the city, no, the small world he created, beneath us. I held Muramasa to my hip and adjusted it not to be so dynamic and bouncy on my belt as we walked to him. And he hasn't changed at all, in any degree. He was still wearing glasses, sporting that afro of crazy stark hair, and that giant almost theatrical white getup with a cape and everything. His face was still that nearly insane, no- completely insane, smile of pride and joy. "Nathan Felix, my dear boy, glad you could make it. How does the place fit you?" he greeted and asked.

I chuckled and shook his hand, firmly and welcomingly. "It's a grand thing, sir. I've only seen a view like this twice in my life." I answered.

Akitsu held my other arm, tightly and firmly, as if she thought that she would fall from the tower if she didn't hold onto me. My attention blinked its way to her, and I was concerned.

"Ah, and Akitsu, sekirei number 7. Seems someone fixed 'the broken number'." Minaka acknowledged her, as she held tighter.

"Hard to believe, though." I told him. "They were so afraid of her, and now all of the ashikabis are afraid of another."

He smiled and cackled merrily. "You refer to 'the armored Ashikabi'. Nathan Felix, Cable." he answered.

I gave him a look. "How do you know?" I asked.

"He knows, everything, Nathan." Shiina answered for him. "He's literally known as, 'the game master'."

Minaka smiled more pridefully. "Oh stop, you're making me blush." Minaka told her, jokingly. "But yes, I always knew. You take fictional inspiration in this little game, don't you?" he asked me.

I looked down at the city, at the "game board", smiling and nodding. "That's correct, I do. Though I doubt you're interested." I affirmed.

"Oh, come now. You're a central player in the love story of the gods." he brought up. "And the internet is **such** a boring place to learn. Better from the personal aspect."

I chuckled. "Alright fine, but can I have some water-?" I started to ask when I held out my hand in verbal communicative gesturing and I felt a cold and moist object slap on my hand.

I looked to find one in my hand, and opened it, drinking it cautiously, still thrown off by surprise. " *****ahem*****!Yes, well, that was-" I began.

"Exciting, right?" he asked. "Oh, there's all kinds of stuff like that here. We may as well be in the future." he bragged. "Oh, do tell your inspiration."

I sat down, as did he. "Well, Nathan Christopher Summers was the son of the mutant leader of the X-Men, Cyclops. He grew up in a future where everything's basically a living hell. Like the Ragnarok had already come, just worse. He has the powers of telekinesis and telepathy. But he was also trained to be the ultimate soldier, in both combat, survival and the use of weaponry like advanced technology and melee weapons." I explained to a good deal. "He is also an integral piece to the Messiah War and Messiah Complex storyline, where he takes the baby Hope Summers from being hunted and killed by the anti-mutant Purifiers, or taken and used by the Marauders or Apocalypse. He's the leader and mentor of the mutants' black-ops team X-Force and he's overall my favorite comic book hero."

Minaka let out a triumphant smile- which I understood was his usual now that I've seen it. "It's all so crazy, I love it. You've got plenty of technology that impresses even **me**. And that sword at your hip!" he exclaimed as he gestured to Muramasa.

I gave a look of confusion. "Muramasa? What about it?"

"Nothing, really." he swashed away, completely throwing me off.

'This guy's... crazy.' I thought to myself. "And then, of course, on to why I called you here." he mentioned.

I was intrigued. "Just what did you call an ashikabi here for?" I asked as he gave me the hint that there'd be something unexpected going on.

"Oh, trust me. You **must** know." he answered.

XXXXXXXXXX

_Click!_ "Come in, team." I called in.

_Click!_ "Elixr at the ready." Kagayaki's voice responded.

_Click!_ "Disturbance at the ready." Midasu responded.

_Click!_ "Razor at the ready." Oriha sang in.

_Click!_ "Beatdown at the ready." Kagayaki called in.

_Click! _"Murder at the ready." Benitsubasa called in.

The night was clear and crisp, the moonlight of pale silver light shining down on us. I stood on a rooftop, holding a gun in my hands and wearing one of my best suits of armor. But these were no ordinary equipmentations, especially in my line of work around here. My armor was a dark metal craft with a dome visor that had a hidden surprise on the face. Ten dots on my face on the helmet could absorb the energy that I summon for Muramasa's bloodlight capabilities, and make beams of bloodlight emmit from my helmet. My armor was also equipped withpadding on the palms of my hands and the grips of my fingers that could absorb my energy and make bloodlight flames like a natural flamethrower; as well as bits and pieces that could make forcefields from my energy, and allow me to fly. My gun that I held was almost like it was made from 30th century clockwork. It was dark metal as well, like adamant brass, a rifle by build, and a slim and sleek scope. It was capable of shooting, yes, but what it shoots is not anything like a plasma blast or a bullet. It was special.

Tsukiumi and Akitsu stood at my sides on the skyscraper. "Akitsu Felix, here." Akitsu said to me.

Tsukiumi scoffed and smiled, crossing her arms in confidence. "Tsukiumi Felix, ready for battle, love." she called out to me, loudly and proudly.

"I'm right here, Tsukiumi." I softly chastised.

"**I said that I was here, thou simpleton!**" she roared.

"For christ's sake, not so loud." I said. "We're going into roll call for battle, not debating something you like."

_Click!_ "Yeah, Tsukiumi." Shiina chimed in on the comm.

"I apologize, husband." Tsukiumi apologized.

I smiled under my helmet and nodded to the world beneath us. "It's time, girls. Our objectives are Minato's team's safety and the children making it out of the city. This is what we've been loving, fighting and training to do." I announced.

They all listened in as I took a breath in and out, and saw an MBI commanding officer in my sights of the scope. "Wait for the signal." I directed as I waited.


End file.
